Opinion: Drew McIntyre should move away from RAW's main event scene
This week's RAW saw Drew McIntyre defeat AJ Styles and Riddle in the main-event to qualify for the Men's Money In The Bank Ladder Match. The win gave a new ray of hope for McIntyre's world title aspirations.
The Scotsman is unable to challenge the WWE champion (as long as Bobby Lashley holds the Championship) following his loss to Lashley at Hell In A Cell. The win also reinforced Drew McIntyre's status as a main-event fixture on Monday nights.
Following his surprise loss to Riddle last week, there was a lot of chatter about Drew McIntyre moving away from the main-event scene. Rumors about a potential feud against Sheamus were also circulating. But that doesn't seem to be the case as of now. Drew McIntyre is undoubtedly one of the favorites to win the Men's MITB Ladder Match.
It's been more than a year since The Scottish Psychopath burst into the main-event scene on the red brand. It's difficult to grade McIntyre's run as a main-event star since it happened during the post-COVID era. McIntyre's win at the 2020 Royal Rumble heralded his rise as a main-event player.
Drew McIntyre's WWE Championship reign was off to a great start with victories over two of the biggest names in the company, Brock Lesnar and Seth Rollins. The lack of top names on the red brand combined with poor booking decisions led to McIntyre's reign fizzling out bit by bit.
The only thing that kept The Scottish Psychopath's reign going strong were his performances inside the ring. McIntyre consistently put out great matches throughout 2020 regardless of who he faced.
A section of the WWE Universe was critical of McIntyre's win on Monday as they felt it didn't serve any purpose. The intent of creating the MITB Ladder Match was for it to be a launching pad for upcoming or lower-tier talent.
The drawback of adding Drew McIntyre to the WWE Title picture
There have been instances of top stars competing in the MITB Ladder Match and even winning it. There are several superstars in WWE right now whose careers could change drastically by winning the MITB briefcase. Drew McIntyre isn't one of them as he is already a proven top-tier talent.
It's time for Drew McIntyre to take a step back from the main event scene. A change of scenery is what The Scottish Psychopath needs right now. McIntyre's redemption story would make for compelling TV. Drew McIntyre finding his way back to the top is a storyline that could take shape over the next few months.
The perception of a superstar can change in an instant. Wrestling fans can be very unforgiving at times. Putting Drew McIntyre back in the world title picture could lead to a negative fan backlash. We have seen the company in such a predicament many times over the past few years.
There have been numerous reports about some NXT superstars moving to the main roster. An established superstar like McIntyre would be a great debut opponent for some of these stars.
Drew McIntyre locking horns with superstars like Bronson Reed, Karrion Kross and Finn Balor would undoubtedly excite the WWE universe. The longer the company makes fans wait, the sweeter McIntyre's eventual next world title victory will be.