Jey Uso and Roman Reigns' Rules of Engagement forces WWE to go with 'less is more?' Exploring possibility for SmackDown
Roman Reigns returns to SmackDown this week for the next chapter in The Bloodline Civil War. Jey Uso and Roman Reigns will take part in The Bloodline Rules of Engagement. While this segment will still get all the attention, WWE has announced only two other segments that will take place. Is this surprising?
Apart from the Rules of Engagement, as of this writing, WWE has announced the Fatal Four-Way US Championship Invitational match and a segment to find Asuka's next challenger for the Women's Championship. This is more than a surprise; it is the result of careful planning by the company.
Two weeks ago on SmackDown, The Tribal Court opened the show. The segment overshot its scheduled time, and other announced segments had to be cut short. Fewer announcements this week could be a precautionary measure in case of any spillover.
Roman Reigns' heel turn came at the correct time
Roman Reigns turning heel at SummerSlam 2020 will go down as one of the top moments of all time. With Reigns giving the best performance of his life over the past three years, fans often wonder why WWE didn't go this route before.
On the latest edition of Oh, You Didn’t Know, WWE Hall of Famer Road Dogg spoke on this subject. Road Dogg, who is also a key backstage figure in the company, feels the timing of Roman's his heel turn was perfect, and if the company had pressed the button earlier, maybe it would not have done that well.
“No, I don’t think so. You gotta let stuff sit, you gotta let stuff simmer. I know that’s unpopular in today’s day and age, where I can get whatever I want, and I can get it right now. Sometimes you gotta sit on this, and see which way the wind blows. Boy, it blew in the right direction, because look [at] where we stand now, and where he stands now — as an individual and superstar."
He further added:
"People hated him, they hated him. They hate him now, and yet everybody in the soldout arena, of which there are a lot of them now, acknowledges him on the weekly. They listen to his every word, they are hanging on his every word, and every facial [expression] in these in-ring promos.”
Road Dogg is possibly right; Roman Reigns' story is not just about being The Head of the Table. He had to come in, build himself, have some top championships, WrestleMania main events, and big moments to be believable as The Head of Table. The position Roman Reigns is in right now did need the buildup of a decade.