Roman Reigns is in the middle of his strangest year yet. While he still is the betting favorite to knock off Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam, Reigns’ position on WWE’s card has never felt this vulnerable. And WWE may be building a better model of tall, dark, and handsome in Drew McIntyre.
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Since landing on Raw with Dolph Ziggler, McIntyre has been the subject of some tantalizing hearsay, mostly involving Vince McMahon being infatuated with the 34-year old Scotsman. Jim Ross has already knighted him as a future Universal Champion. Rumors have WWE using a slow and steady push, not one that has him main eventing four-consecutive WrestleManias.
And now Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio claims that WWE plans to protect McIntyre during his time with Ziggler. That means pinning McIntyre is off the table for the foreseeable future. In WWE, a pin embargo is the surest indication that they have high hopes for a Superstar.
Now a couple of friendly rumors won’t vault McIntyre past Reigns. However, the next few months could prove to be very telling.
Based on what we’ve seen in 2018, WWE isn’t quite sure what to do with Reigns. While we’ll never be behind Vice McMahon’s curtain, Reigns’ journey this year has been odd. His WrestleMania loss felt like an audible rather than the long-term plan. His defeat at the Greatest Royal Rumble and the “I got screwed” aftermath sent mixed signals. His feud with Jinder Mahal asked the audience to cast a clothespin vote. And now he’s beefing with The Revival?
I’m not entirely ready to say The Don is slipping, but if Reigns loses to Bob Lashley at Extreme Rules, then Reigns will be 1-3 in his last four pay-per-views.
McIntyre though looks to scratch every inch Vince McMahon has. Even more, WWE just doubled down on McIntyre and Ziggler’s partnership but adding the Intercontinental Championship. And to officially make this a contest, Seth Rollins and Reigns have reunited to fight back against McIntyre and Ziggler.
WWE has made a point to put Reigns and McIntyre in the ring together. While those moments didn’t feel as electric as McYtyles staredown with Braun Strowman, it still made the proverbial needle bounce.
Right now, Reigns chances of meeting Lesnar at SummerSlam are about 50/50/ I think WWE hopes he can galvanize the fanbase enough to justify another crack at the Universal championship. But I think they know that Reigns vs. McIntyre could be fruitful. And that Brooklyn crowd will be ready to deify the Scotsman.
[H/T Cagesideseats]
