Angelo Dawkins is confident about Street Profits’ future ahead of the 2021 WWE Draft

With the WWE Draft being one of the company’s most unpredictable times of the year, it’s been well documented that the moves made are as much of a surprise to the talent as it is to the fans.

Several shocking swaps have transpired over the years, and some Superstars have benefited big time from switching shows and getting a change of scenery. Current SmackDown star Angelo Dawkins can attest to that, having been moved from NXT to Raw in 2019 and from Raw to SmackDown in 2020.

As one-half of The Street Profits, Dawkins has had great success in the tag team ranks with Montez Ford for the last four years. They’ve thrived on every show they’ve been a part of, and although there’s a chance they could be split up as soon as Night 1 of the 2021 WWE Draft this Friday night on SmackDown, he’s confident that both of them will continue to have bright futures ahead of them regardless of where they wind up.

Before the Draft gets underway, Dawkins took the time to chat with Daily DDT about everything WWE Draft related, his own experiences with the event, his accomplishments as part of The Street Profits, and more.

Angelo Dawkins on the possibility of The Street Profits splitting up and if he has a preference between Raw and SmackDown

Most Superstars don’t know where they’re going in the WWE Draft until their name is called. It also isn’t uncommon for tag teams to be unceremoniously split up and put on separate shows (with The New Day last year being a prime example).

That may not bode well for The Street Profits, especially coming off Ford’s strong showing against Roman Reigns last week on SmackDown, but an excited Dawkins has confidence heading into the two-night event that it’s going to work out in their favor.

“We’re confident. We’re two confident individuals,” he said. “No matter what happens, wherever we go, if we go as a tag, we’re going to dominate. If we end up having to go solo, ‘Tez is going to go do his thing and I’m going to do my thing. We’re still going to be brothers in the end.”

Having spent an ample amount of time on all three of WWE’s biggest brands over the course of his career, he isn’t particularly partial to one show over another. He recognizes the benefits of being a part of both brands and doesn’t have a preference where Street Profits end up.

“Wherever we go, I have love for both brands honestly,” Dawkins said. “With SmackDown, being on FOX and being on that platform, being on a Friday is awesome. Just getting the weekend started. Being on Monday, being everyone’s start of the week to entertain and just to have fun. I have love for both brands. Wherever we go, we’ll be good.”

Angelo Dawkins reflects on being drafted to Raw in 2019, SmackDown in 2020

The Street Profits have been drafted to a different show each of the last two years and 2021 may see that trend continue.

In 2019, following a two-year stint as a team in NXT and a lot longer than that for Dawkins on his own, The Street Profits were picked by Raw in the WWE Draft. He noted that the move made sense because they were already regularly appearing on the show by that point in backstage segments, but it was a memorable moment nonetheless that meant his hard work down in developmental had paid off.

“It was just a moment of reflection at that point in time, reflection and happiness,” he said. “Reflection of all the hard work we put in at NXT and all the grinding we did at the Performance Center to make this opportunity even possible, to be in the position to get drafted to Raw. Happiness just all around to say, ‘All right, we finally did it. The work don’t stop here. We have to keep going and prove the people that drafted us right by letting them know they made the right decision by drafting The Street Profits.’”

Just one year later, Dawkins and Ford were selected by SmackDown in the 2020 WWE Draft. It came as a shock to almost everyone considering they were the reigning Raw Tag Team Champions at the time, but that merely meant they’d trade titles with The New Day and become the new SmackDown Tag Team Champions by default.

Dawkins shared his reaction to being moved to the blue brand in 2020: “We were really shocked at that point in time, but I remember when The New Day got drafted to Raw, I was like, ‘We’re about to go up against The New Day on Raw! Okay, cool!’ And then we found out The Street Profits [were going] to SmackDown. We were like, ‘Oh, all right, I guess we’re going to SmackDown. Sweet, okay, let’s go!’

“We had the title swap with The New Day and it made it funny because Survivor Series is literally three or four weeks later and we ended up facing The New Day, the team we swapped titles with,” he continued. “In a way, we were Raw and SmackDown Tag Team champions at that time. We never lost the Raw Tag Team Championship.”

Regaining the Raw Tag Team Championship would instantly become a priority for them if they were to be moved back to the red brand in this year’s Draft. He noted he’d love to be sharing a locker room with The Viking Raiders, Ricochet, and Big E again, as well as be on the same show as RK-Bro and The Hurt Business for the potential matchups.

As for the atmosphere backstage at the WWE Draft shows, it isn’t what most might expect. Dawkins explained how isn’t overly hectic behind the scenes on either night because everyone is prepared for the possibility of being picked by the opposing show.

“The atmosphere is just chill, nice and calm,” he said. “Everybody is ready for wherever they go, ready for the opportunity, and ready to prove that the draft pick the brand made was the right choice and prove them right.”

Angelo Dawkins dishes on NXT 2.0, his accomplishments, and goals going forward

Dawkins is one of very few people to have competed on the early episodes of NXT back when it was rebooted in 2012 and still be with the company actively today. He had a lengthier stay than most on the black-and-gold brand but made the most of it and eventually found his footing alongside Ford in the tag team ranks.

Although the rebranded NXT 2.0 is still trying to figure out what works for its updated format and what doesn’t, Dawkins is excited to see the show evolve and is already impressed with many of the new names, including Bron Breakker and Toxic Attraction.

“I love the fact that they’re changing it because things have to evolve and they’re making new stars and evolving along with it as well,” he said. “Knowing how it was when NXT first made the transition to FCW to Orlando and the Performance Center and seeing what it was at that time and continuing to grow and keep the ball moving and produce more and more Superstars, I think NXT 2.0 is taking it to a whole new level.”

Dawkins went from holding no gold in his first seven years with WWE to winning all three sets of the company’s men’s tag titles across Raw, SmackDown, and NXT in the span of 16 months. The only other team in WWE history to accomplish such a feat was The Revival, but The Street Profits did it even quicker.

Those accolades are not lost on Dawkins, who feels he and Ford have yet to scratch the scratch of what they can do as a team in WWE.

“Wow! I knew it was pretty fast, but I didn’t know it was that fast,” he said upon hearing the stat. “It’s awesome to have those accomplishments, to be able to accomplish something that probably a lot of people didn’t expect. Me and ‘Tez both looked at each other said, ‘We really got something going here… The sky’s the limit.’

“The sky is still the limit,” he added. “We’re hungry to get our tag team titles back. It’s an honor to be one of the two teams mentioned in the Triple Crown family and hopefully, there’s more to come, but it’s really awesome to be in that category of accomplishments.”

As far as what he aims to accomplish going forward, reclaiming Raw or SmackDown’s tandem titles leads the list of their current goals as a unit. If they do happen to be split up, singles stardom isn’t out of the realm of possibility.

Either way, The Street Profits have a bond that will never be broken.

“Just continue to stack up on gold, continue to win championships, and being not one of but the best tag team in the whole world,” Ford said about what more he wants to strive for. “We want to be number one. That’s all we’re focused on right now. We haven’t really thought much of singles, but if we do, if it ever happens, we have aspirations to be on top, both of us, and support each other no matter what.”

Catch Night 1 of the 2021 WWE Draft this Friday on SmackDown and Night 2 next Monday on Raw.