Grading The Roster Changes From Smackdown's Superstar Shake-Up
Night two of Vince McMahon's WWE Superstar Shake-Up is over. While no clear trades between the [...]
Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens was a much needed addition to the roster after Raw took Dean Ambrose and the Intercontinental Championship to Monday nights. However, there's still a chance that Owens could get shipped back to Raw if he loses the US title to Chris Jericho at Payback. As much as I love Jericho, Owens is greatly needed on Tuesday nights. In one night, he's already made the US Championship seem more valuable than Randy Orton's WWE Championship.
A
prevnextCharlotte Flair
Smackdown's women's division was in desperate need of star power after losing Alexa Bliss. Charlotte will give the blue brand a ton of credibility and in turn Smackdown will give her feuds that don't include Sasha Banks and Bayley.
This is a solid A+
prevnextTamina Snuka
Love seeing Tamina back on the roster, but hate that she was brought in as the punchline to Shane O' Mac's trolling of the Smackdown audience. Oh well, that will all be forgotten soon and hopefully Tamina can do for the Snuka legacy what Charlotte has done for the Flair's.
C
prevnextThe New Day
Could not be happier to see The New Day get a fresh start on a show that doesn't have the time to overexpose them. Hopefully this will lead to some of the members actually getting a singles push. They all have the talent to be top stars and Big E could make a huge run at the top of the card if given the freedom to do so.
A +
prevnextRusev
Unfortunately Rusev's shoulder injury prevented him from making an immediate impact on Smackdown, but he should provide a big boost when he eventually does return. Perhaps no one needed to get away from Raw more than the Bulgarian Brute. Since losing the United States Championship to Roman Reigns last summer, he's been booked more like Santino Marella than a serious threat to a major championship. Rusev might fit perfectly in feuds with AJ Styles, Randy Orton and Luke Harper.
A+
prevnextLana
WWE announced that Lana will not only be joining Rusev as a member of the roster, but will actually be a part of the Smackdown in-ring women's division. By all accounts the Ravishing Russian has been impressive in her time in the ring at NXT live events, so we look forward to seeing what she can bring to Team Blue.
B
prevnextSin Cara
Sin Cara is still employed by the WWE. I did not realize that until last night. Can't imagine him making much of an impact on the roster or getting much TV time.
D-
prevnextShining Stars
This would have gotten a solid D, but Primo and Epico made a big first impression on Smackdown when they attacked American Alpha Tuesday night. Dressed in street clothes, it appears The Stars have ditched their travel agent gimmick and gotten a really cool finisher to boot. I'll give it a chance.
C+
prevnextJinder Mahal
One night after giving Finn Balor a concussion, Jinder Mahal got doused with beer by Rob Gronkowski and took a loss to Mojo Rawley. It basically looks like Jinder will be stuck in the angry foreigner gimmick regardless of which brand he shows up on.
C-
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