WWE: Top Five Money In The Bank Briefcase Cash-Ins

We have seen careers made by winning the Money In The Bank briefcase and winning WWE gold. It is that time of year again and we are excited to see who will win this year. However, today we look back at five of the best cash-ins.

It is time again for one of the most exciting times of the year. Besides the Royal Rumble, the Money In The Bank is my second favorite concept in the WWE. You know that there is a great chance that whoever wins the match will go on to become a future world champion. Out of the twenty-six times a man or woman cashed in their Money in the Bank briefcase, only four occasions did the cash in end up failing. The other twenty-two times, we have seen a new world champion crowned and those are good odds to the briefcase holder if you ask me.

Most recently, we saw Nikki A.S.H and Big E cash in their respected contracts to win the WWE Championship and the Raw Women’s Championship for the first time in their careers. From established stars that finally got their hands on the championship for the first time to new superstars getting a big break, the Money in the Bank briefcase has the potential to change careers. As we grow near to finding the next two briefcase holders, let’s take a look back at history and determine which five of the cash-ins were the best.

5. Edge (2006)

There has to be someone to set the standard and that is exactly what Edge did in 2006. After winning the first-ever Money in the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania 21 in 2005, Edge held onto it for nearly an entire year. While Edge was holding the Money in the Bank briefcase, his real-life affair with Lita become public knowledge and the two were put together on weekly television. During this period, Edge became one of the most despised men in the company but arguably was what helped push him to the top. As much as the fans hated him, they still loved to hate him.

It wasn’t until the New Year’s Revolution PPV that Edge finally found his moment to strike and cash in his briefcase. After John Cena retained the WWE Championship in an elimination chamber, Mr. McMahon came out to let the WWE Universe know the show wasn’t over. He brought out Edge who handed over the briefcase to the boss. A few minutes later, the bell sounded and Edge hit Cena with a spear to become the WWE Champion for the first time in his career. He would go on to be known as the “ultimate opportunist” and set the bar for every cash-in to follow, even on him.

4. The Miz (2010)

In 2009, The Miz had a career overhaul. After being split from his partner John Morrison and drafted to Monday Night Raw in the 2009 draft lottery, The Miz become a serious competitor. He wasn’t just the reality star turned pro-wrestler anymore. He was a viable threat to anybody he got into the ring against. He had his theme music changed to the “I Came To Play” theme music that he still uses today. With the change of his theme music, The Miz soon won the United States Championship and earned a spot in the Raw’s Money in the Bank match.

Many fans were shocked when The Miz beat everyone else to the top of the ladder and walked away with the Money in the Bank briefcase. Four months after winning the briefcase, The Miz cashed it in on the November 22nd episode of Raw after the WWE Champion Randy Orton had been beaten down by Nexus but still managed to defend his championship successfully against Wade Barrett. After the match was over, The Miz cashed in his briefcase and had to fight to hit the Skull Crushing Finale and shock the WWE Universe and one little girl specifically as he became the WWE Champion.

3. Dolph Ziggler (2013)

There have been many pops that have shaken the arena. You can think about the returns of major superstars or a huge title change that had the fans going crazy. Although, they may come no bigger than the pop Dolph Ziggler got when he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase on the Raw after WrestleMania in 2013. The New Jersey crowd on this night was one of the best that I have ever seen. They were hyped up all night long and kept the show entertaining. During a WrestleMania rematch between Jack Swagger and World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio, the crowd chanted throughout the match that they wanted Dolph Ziggler.

Even though Dolph was a heel at the time, the crowd made sure he was a fan favorite on this night. Once the match was over and the music hit after the match was over, the crowd went insane. Ziggler jetted towards the ring with Big E and AJ Lee by his side. Alberto Del Rio looked to be having trouble with his ankle as the referee had to do his job and start the match. A few minutes later, Dolph Ziggler caught Alberto with the Zig-Zag and a new World Heavyweight Champion was crowned and the fans loved every minute of it, even if the reign didn’t last long.

2. Randy Orton (2013)

Any fan of the WWE should know about the storyline between Daniel Bryan and The Authority. During the feud, Daniel Bryan became one of the biggest superstars in WWE history and ended up holding the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 30 with around 75,000 fans chanting “Yes!” in celebration. However, none of that would have probably happened if Randy Orton didn’t win the Money in the Bank briefcase in 2013. Shortly after Dolph Ziggler cashed in his briefcase, Randy won the briefcase and set to follow the holders before him and win the world championship. However, nobody could have expected how he would do it at the time.

At SummerSlam, John Cena had hand-selected Daniel Bryan to fight him for the WWE Championship. Cena thought that Bryan had earned a shot for the championship. After a hard-fought match, Daniel Bryan shocked many by hitting Cena with a running knee and winning the WWE championship for the first time. Unfortunately, Daniel Bryan’s celebration and first reign lasted about the same amount of time. When Daniel thought he was on top of the world, the special referee Triple H betrayed him and delivered a heartbreaking pedigree. Just on cue, Randy Orton’s music then hit the arena and a few moments later Randy Orton was WWE Champion and one of WWE’s biggest stories ever had just begun.

1. Seth Rollins (2015)

When Seth Rollins made a deal with the Devil and betrayed his brothers in The Shield, you hated to admit that Seth Rollins was going to be destined for greatness. When The Shield was at the top of the WWE, the fans were wondering who was going to be the breakout star of the group. It looked like it was going to be set up for Dean Ambrose to be the one to break out of the group as the star. Then at times, it looked like it might be Roman Reigns turning on his brothers. However, it always seemed that “The Architect” Seth Rollins was the glue that kept them together.

Once Seth Rollins brought the chair down on Ambrose and Reigns, it would seem that Seth was the glue as The Shield was killed by his own hand. Seth left The Shield and embraced his new role alongside Triple H and Randy Orton as a member of The Authority. He turned into one of the most hated superstars in the company overnight. He began to be backed up by the members of The Authority stable and even had his own J and J security to back him up in Joey Mercury and Jamie Noble. He became such a nuisance that even his own stablemate Randy Orton to tired of him.

After winning the Money in the Bank briefcase in a match that included Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins felt like he was on top of the world and wasn’t afraid of letting everybody know so. He was despised as the weasel member of The Authority and the fans loved it when Randy Orton finally turned on him and wanted to beat him down a few pegs. Randy and Seth Rollins finally faced off at WrestleMania 31 in an instant classic that resulted in one of Randy Orton’s most replayable RKO’s to this date when he countered Seth’s stomp.

Randy was able to defeat Rollins and it looked like Rollins’s momentum may have been halted. However, that would prove not to be the case in just a bit over an hour. During the first of Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns WWE Championship matches, Roman and Brock were both down after a grueling match where Brock Lesnar had just caught Roman with an F5. Before Brock had a chance to capitalize, the theme music of Seth Rollins hit, and the WWE Universe lost their minds. Rollins rushed the ring and become the first and only person to cash in the briefcase at WrestleMania. He hit a stomp on Roman Reigns and became the first member of The Shield to become the WWE Champion.