WWE has been known to like a certain type of talent. However, these days the type of guy they love may be a thing of the past. Most think that WWE has attached themselves to bigger guys over the years to help marketability, which is true. The idea in this is simply business. Understandable, of course, but not something WWE has to do often. WWE needed to find someone new though, someone that had the big body but was a departure from the type of guy they normally put in a top position. Enter Roman Reigns.
The 6-foot-3, 284 pounder is a freak athlete. He can do anything asked of him and then some. He has the strength of a John Cena and the pop style of a Rock. Pop style refers to the moves that get people to cheer or get amped for a move — or a person, for that matter. Many believe Reigns has a presence that few others have, and that could be due to this being in his blood.
Reigns is part of the Samoan Dynasty of wrestlers in WWE. This has seen people such as Rikishi, Umaga, Rosey, the Wild Samoans, High Chief Peter Maivia, The Rock, and of course the Usos. WWE has always had a place for this family, and like the Hart Dynasty, WWE will continue to give opportunities to these guys. They realize that they have all the tools in the world to become a success. They just need to be given the ability to show it.
Roman did not come in with the fanfare that a Sami Zayn, Seth Rollins, or Dean Ambrose had. Many expected these men to do well and kill it from day one, and for the most part, they have. Reigns came in as a former football star at Georgia Tech, and a failed pro-player. The family business was calling him, and he answered. He came in untrained and took over quickly. Those in FCW and NXT felt that Reigns was some sort of freak due to his ability to adapt and pick up the WWE style so quickly. He had “IT” from day one, and everyone knew it. He was more than a body that WWE liked, but rather a blue chip athlete that had to be slowly molded into the next big thing.
WWE knew he had to be used in a special way from the moment he debuted, so they paired him with two top guys from the Indy circuit, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. They made up The Shield. Both men took pressure off of Reigns, and allowed him to grow within the team. Reigns then showed that he was more than ready to be on his own. His coming out party was at this past year’s Royal Rumble, where he eliminated so many people that he set the rumble record. It was down between him and Batista in the final two. Roman lost out, but he was who everyone was talking about after the event ended. From then on, Reigns was unstoppable.
After The Shield ended, Reigns just kept on showing why he was hyped up so much for such a long time. The Powerhouse has been proving that he was worthy time and time again.
WWE was slowly building Reigns up all in an effort for him to look like the savior of the WWE come WrestleMania 31. It seemed like nothing could stop him.
Saturday, September 20, 2014. Roman Reigns is in severe pain and calls 911. He is taken by ambulance to a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee. Reigns then finds out he has to have emergency hernia surgery . The hernia was wrapped around part of his intestine, meaning doctors had to operate as soon as possible or risk long-term complications.
After undergoing successful surgery, doctors tell the world that Reigns could be out a significant amount of time, all depending on the healing process. The low end of the time he’ll be out is six weeks. The high end however is much worse: six months. Obviously, WWE wants to take a wait and see approach when it comes to Reigns, as bringing him back too early could cause a lot of complications.
So the question is obviously asked: Will this stop the push for Reigns, or will he come back and be just as big as he was the day he left? Many believe that it will depend on the crowd reaction. If he comes back to a massive ovation, WWE will have no choice but to put him in a similar position. If he is given no reception or a very little one, WWE might not push for the move. However, the current plan is this, as reported by Wrestling Observer
“WWE doesn’t anticipate that this should affect his push, which as we’ve reported is said to be leading toward a match with Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. WWE hopes that Reigns will be back in time for the Royal Rumble but even if it is three months, he will still be able to come back at the Royal Rumble, which would set him on the road to WrestleMania and his supposed date with Lesnar.”
Many feel that WWE might be trying to push Reigns too hard, so this would give those fans a break from him before his major push to the top come January. The interesting part is that Daniel Bryan is also scheduled to return between November and January. So WWE might run off Daniel Bryan for a bit before bringing Reigns back as a precaution.
This, of course, depends on if Bryan’s recovery continues to go as well as it has been. If it does not, then obviously Reigns could be pulled back sooner rather than later, mainly due to the fact that WWE needs him. This also means that a guy like Dean Ambrose may be pushed a bit more than usual, and John Cena may also be pushed more. This simply out of need for top babyfaces. Time will tell what happens however. What we do know is that Reigns is out for a while , but WWE does still plan to keep his push just as hot upon his return. That is obviously good news for Reigns fans.
[IMG Credits: refbumpreview.com, Bleacher Report, DeviantArt-I-J-D]