WWE Draft Night Two Graded

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WWE splits their roster after Smackdown’s move to FOX | Photo by: CBSSports.com

Chuck Sipps, Arts and Life Editor

With the WWE Draft in the books, we will be grading night two and then the draft as a whole. Who came out on top of the battle of the brands? Let’s find out.

 

Pick 1  RAW- Seth Rollins

  • Seth Rollins is not working as the number one guy. While he hasn’t reached Roman Reigns levels of X-Pac heat, the bloom is definitely off the rose when it comes to Rollins. He is still a premiere in-ring talent, but the whole fiasco with the Fiend has really dampened his connection with the crowd, as has WWE’s penchant to put his relationship with Becky Lynch at the forefront of fans’ minds. What Rollins really needs is a strong feud to establish himself as the top guy.

 

Pick 2 Smackdown- Brock Lesnar

  • Not really much of a surprise here, with the Universal Champion heading to RAW, it seems only right to have the WWE Champion on Smackdown. While most fans seem sick of the Lesnar’s act, the WWE brass does not seem to concur. Maybe the move to SD will reignite Lesnar’s passion for the business. But probably not.

 

Pick 3 RAW- Charlotte Flair

  • Once again no surprises here as Flair was mocked draft to RAW by almost everyone. Flair has a boatload of talent and though fans can easily see through WWE’s attempts to boost her title count, being a 10-time champion is no easy feat.

 

Pick 4 Smackdown- The New Day

  • The fear that the New Day would be seperated is all for not. The real question here will be whether or not Kofi will get his rematch against Lesnar and if he will fare better than a five second squash.

 

Pick 5 RAW- Andrade and Zelina Vega

  • With his paramour Charlotte being moved to RAW, it was forgone conclusion that Andrade would be joining her. Andrade is a phenomenal in ring talent who has the look and skill to carry the top belt. Whether WWE will ever give him the chance is another question entirely.

Pick 6 RAW- Asuka and Kari Sane

  • Of all the misused talent in WWE, none have fared worse than Asuka. The formerly undefeated NXT Women’s champ was a true force of nature and appeared to be a lock to be a hit on the main roster. Leave it to WWE creative to ruin even a sure thing. As for Sane, she is another underused talent that is being wasted on a belt and division that WWE doesn’t seem to care about.

 

Pick 7 Smackdown- Daniel Bryan

 

  • At this point it feels like Bryan is the heart and soul of the team blue. Whether he’s a face or heel, fans can’t get enough of the Planet’s Champion. Bryan is a rare breed, a huge star who isn’t afraid to put others over.

 

 

Pick 8 RAW-  Rusev

  • Rusev has a history of stop and start pushes in the WWE. The “Bulgarian Brute” always finds a way to make the most of his opportunities but has relatively little to show for it in terms of long term success.

 

Pick 9 Smackdown– Bayley

  • The Smackdown Women’s Champion is going to Smackdown. How novel. But seriously, the new look Bayley appears to be ditching her happy-go-lucky babyface persona for a character with more of an edge. Thanks again to poor creative, Bayley never reached the levels she should have so hopefully this heel turn will be her chance to run the women’s division.

 

Pick 10 RAW- Aleister Black

  • Like Charlotte and Andrate, with Black’s wife Zelina Vega on RAW, it was doubtful that Black would end up anywhere else. Hopefully rather than sitting in a dark room looking for a fight, Black will hit the ring and get to kick some face.

 

Pick 11 RAW- Cedric Alexander

  • Alexander has all the talent in the world but none of the consistent booking. After being repeatedly jobbed out to AJ Styles it is unclear where Alexander will go from here.

 

Pick 12 Smackdown- Shinsuke Nakamura

  • It’s a damn shame that Nakamura was selected so low. The current Intercontinental Champion has yet to receive the push he deserves on the main roster. Just another victim of the poor creative that is so prevalent in the product.

 

Pick 13 Raw- Humberto Carrillo

  • 205 Live may or may not be dead, but it looks like Carrillo has a bright future ahead of him.

 

Pick 14 Smackdown- Ali

  • What could have been for Ali? After Kofi Kingston took Ali’s place after an injury, Kingston was able to parlay that into a WWE Title win. While we will never know if Ali could have achieved the same success, we do know that he hasn’t sniffed the title contention since.

 

Pick 15 RAW-  Erick Rowan

  • Rowan is now completely separated former leaders Bray Wyatt and Daniel Bryan. What does the future hold for Rowan if he is sans partner Luke Harper? Even WWE Creative doesn’t know.

 

Pick 16 Raw- Buddy Murphy

  • Rumors are abound that Paul Hayman really wanted Murphy on RAW. Hopefully that leads to someone properly utilizing the “Best Kept Secret’s” many talents.

 

Pick 17 Smackdown- Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode

  • The former RAW Tag Team Champions are going to SD. Whether this partnership is a long term partnering or not is unclear but they have shown a level of cohesion together that is usually absent from makeshift tag teams.

 

Pick 18 RAW- Jinder Mahal

  • Oh how the mighty have fallen. The former WWE champion has returned back to jobber status and it feels unlikely that he will ever be more than that again.

 

Pick 19 Smackdown- Carmella

  • ‘Mella is Smackdown. Carmella has grown far beyond what was expected of her, especially as she was once the third wheel of the Enzo and Cass trio. She is separated from long time partner R-Truth but it will be interesting to see Carmella running solo again.

 

Pick 20 Raw- R-Truth

  • Give R-Truth garbage and he will give you the 24-7 Championship. Whatever ‘Truth is asked to do he gives his all to and it’s impossible to not get caught up in his fun loving ways.

 

Pick 21  RAW- Samoa Joe

 

  • How there are supposedly 20 better superstars to select than Samoa Joe, I will never know. Joe, more than almost anyone, deserves a run with the top belt and unfortunately that doesn’t seem likely to happen on RAW.

 

 

Pick 22 Smackdown- The Miz

  • Another head scratcher in terms of placement. Miz has grown into one of WWE’s most appreciated stars and he is a strong upper card addition for SD.

 

Pick 23 RAW- Akira Tozawa

  • Cool, I guess? Tozawa has the goods in the ring but I have no faith that WWE will use him as anymore as enhancement talent.

 

Pick 24 Smackdown- King Corbin

 

  • WWE really wanted the King of the Ring to make their next big star. They succeeded. Nothing says big star like being picked 24th in a draft.

 

 

Pick 25 RAW- Shelton Benjamin.

  • I remember Benjamin. He used to be such a great wrestler. I hope WWE resigns him. Oh wait they did? Hm, wouldn’t know it by watching the product.

 

Pick 26 RAW- Rey Mysterio

  • Ok in what world are Jinder Mahal, Akira Tozwa or Shelton Benjamin worth taking over Rey Mysterio. At least it’s a bit of a surprise as it seemed likely he’d be staying on SD with Cain Velasquez.

 

Pick 27 Smackdown- Shorty Gable

  • I hate this name so much. However, Gable can go in the ring. Relative to his size, Gable has unparalleled strength and an Olympic pedigree that may make him the steal of the draft.

 

Pick 28 RAW-  Titus O’Neil

 

  • Yeah as soon as O’Neil wasn’t taken number 1 overall it completely broke my bracket. Ah well.  O’Neil’s stock has fallen so dramatically since the Prime Time Players were prematurely broken up that this is an inconsequential selection

 

 

Pick 29 Smackdown-Elias

  • Ladies and Gentlemen …Elias is coming to Smackdown. The usually entertaining heel act should be a fitting midcard talent for Team Blue.

 

Pick 30 RAW- Liv Morgan

  • I can’t wait to not watch Morgan not wrestler on RAW as much as she didn’t on Smackdown!

 

RAW: C- The drafting tonight seems so arbitrary. No thought was given to placement.

 

Smackdown: C+- See above.

 

The draft felt really slapped together and there were little to no surprises. Smackdown comes out ahead as the winner of both nights but time will tell how things really shakes out.

 

Best Pick- Daniel Bryan

Worst Pick- Samoa Joe at 21

Steal of the Night- Samoa Joe at 21

The IDK of the Night- The Miz

WTF Pick of the Night- Samoa Joe at 21