WWE Fans Will Respond More Positively To Roman Reigns As United States Champion
The past few months have been a roller coaster ride for Roman Reigns. After Wrestlemania 32, WWE had established him as “The Guy.” AJ Styles proved without a doubt that Reigns is a great performer inside the ring, but the WWE Universe was generally unimpressed with his WWE Championship title reign because they believed he was being “shoved down their throats” when other WWE Superstars deserved the chance.
After it had been revealed that he violated WWE’s Wellness Policy and served a 30-day suspension, the WWE Universe was thrilled to watch him fall down the WWE ladder. It took a few months to work himself back into the fold, but last night Roman regained some success. Last night at WWE Clash of Champions, Reigns defeated Rusev to become the United States Champion, which has already brought back his confidence.
Roman Reigns acknowledged that he’s been in a little bit of a rut, lost some big matches, but last night’s U.S. Championship win was a big step forward. It’s clear that Roman is genuinely happy about holding a WWE title again, especially the U.S. title the Rusev has done a great job bringing back some prestige over the last few months. Now, it’s Roman Reigns’ turn to carry the midcard, and the WWE fans are reasonably happy.
For whatever reason, the dynamic between Roman Reigns and the WWE Universe remains estranged. It may be beyond repair, but there is a lot more going for him as the United States Champion because it helps the WWE product in many ways that the WWE Universe will acknowledge and appreciate over time.
Overall, the WWE Universe seems to be reacting favorably to his title win at WWE Clash of Champions. The response is never going to be 100 percent positive, but people seem generally okay with the idea of Reigns as the United States Champion. It’ll keep him out of the WWE title picture, which is the only thing most of the naysayers want, and the prestige of the U.S. title is going to go through the roof on his shoulder.
Recently, it was reported that Roman Reigns has intentionally being kept out of the WWE Universal title picture because WWE was focused on building new stars in the main event of Raw. That’s always a good idea for the product no matter what, so WWE fans are going to be pleased to see that as a result.
What is really going to make the WWE Universe cut Roman Reigns some slack will be the fresh feuds that will be created by having him as Raw’s midcard champion, and it’ll boost the prestige of the U.S. title into the stratosphere. WWE Superstars like Neville, Sami Zayn, Cesaro, and others are going to be able to feud with Reigns for the U.S. Championship, which is going to elevate everyone around him because of his past work.
It won’t be identical to John Cena’s United States title reign along with the “U.S. Open Challenge,” but the WWE Universe gave Cena a lot of credit for his run as the U.S. Champion. After a few months of it, they were more accepting of him challenging for world titles again. The same thing could happen with Roman Reigns.
WWE wasn’t going to allow Roman Reigns to float around in Raw’s midcard like they do with other WWE Superstars. Raw’s midcard will be elevated, it will give others the chance to work with him, and he’ll make the U.S. title important because of who he is. Like it or not, he’s got the necessary star power to be a top guy wherever he goes in WWE. The spotlight follows him. The WWE fans just need to see him in a new light.
[Image by WWE.com]
