The Road to Wrestlemania has kicked off. Raw set up two stories at the rumble. No doubt Cena and Miz will headline in a WWE title match. Randy Orton and Punk are locked as well. Tonight, we will see where guys like Morrison, Sheamus and others will fall. The Rumble certainly brought a few surprises. I wondered what Raw would bring before the pyro hit. Well, I was certainly surprised by the end of the broadcast. Before we get there, we must take a closer look at what was the Royal Rumble.
Did I notice the Rumble having extra men? Yes, the rumble match was too long. It dragged on and didn't bring any excitement at the finish (except Santino which was brilliant). In the end, I'm extremely happy Del Rio won. I understand casual fans didn't like the Rumble match. Nexus dominated for a span and the ring never filled up much. I felt having Nexus dominate helped the group gain some momentum they had previously lost. On the flip side, Corre was rather weak aside from Barrett. Miz got the cheap win, as I predicted. Edge and Ziggler stole the show. Their opener was a fantastic match. They developed a story inside the ring, a few close calls and provided doubt that Edge may not survive. Ziggler sells as well as Mr. Perfect back in the day. Dolph was the big winner on Sunday night. The loser was John Morrison. I know he pulled off a miracle move and it was special. Fans believed he was a dark horse to win. Instead, he was easy pickings for Nexus and didn't end up close to the finish. I said in a previous blog, Morrison could look stronger than Ziggler. I still believe that but the writers didn't allow it. He's the most interesting guy on Raw, as in I have no idea where his future is headed.
The opening celebration was fantastic. Del Rio is the perfect heel with his combo of JBL with a 100 more times the charisma. I was a little surprised they made the announcement so quickly of Edge and Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Title. The WWE has done a great job building a new star in Del Rio. Del Rio and Edge will provide a match worthy of a great main event. I wish Christian can comeback in time to get involved. Most of the time, I'd be pissed if Raw spent the opening segment on a Smackdown star. This time, it didn't bother me. Del Rio's announcement gives us 2 months to salivate over the potential match.
Raw has done a good job of exposing Harris and McGillicuty. In the beginning of Nexus, these two were nothings. They are something now. The truth is the tag division will never be as good as TNA. Their division is strong and loaded. I don't care that the WWE doesn't have 10 teams. I just want to see them use the ones they have. If they keep Harris and McGillicuty together, that's a start. I still wish they kept Cryme Tyme. Santino and Kozlov have grown on me. The cobra is hilarious. The crowd even gets pumped to see the odd couple. A good win and then..
Boy, did things switch gears in a hurry? The crowd jumped to their feet for Orton. As much as I hated the end of Orton and Miz title match at the Rumble, it still leads to Punk Orton at Mania. I'd rather see them duke it out than Miz and Cena. Orton said he was to nice in 2010. Good to see the cold calculating Orton return in 2011. He won't punt them all because the Nexus needs to be together for their showdown versus the Corre at Wrestlemania. However, in one punt Orton succeeded something Cena never could, actually get rid of a Nexus member.
The whole Dibiase segment leads to Maryse perhaps changing to a face and the thought of a Lawler Dibiase match down the line. That thought went away at the end of Raw. It still could be in the works as Lawler could help Dibiase get over. This is the exact reason you keep guys like Lawler and Booker around. They helped elevate the young talent. They've pushed Lawler to much (more later) and Booker could come in on Friday night to help Drew.
Bryan and Kidd was meaningless as was the Uso Henry Kahli dance off pants off. Just have Gail Kim wrestle Kong already.
Edge and Miz had a nice match. Cena's little tactics are stupid and yet it worked tonight. Cena had to get a little revenge. I thought Miz might try to get involved in the main event. Alas, it was not to be and Cena got the last laugh on Miz this evening.
Sunday night, I was disappointed Awesome Kong didn't debut. I felt giving Eve the belt made no sense. After time to deliberate my thought process, I was wrong. Nobody saw it coming. Everyone felt Triple H and Kong were returning/debuting at the Rumble. The WWE held off and I'm even more excited in anticipation for them. Meanwhile, Eve gives LayCool someone new.
I don't know who or what will happen on 2-21-11 or what those little videos are. I want to believe it's the Undertaker. That's a complete guess. The 21st is a Monday so that wouldn't make sense. I'll crap my pants if it's Sting.
Wow, Truth eliminating Orton was a total shock, in a good way. Miz and Orton is over so moving forward is a great move. Plus, the air in the arena was sucked out when Truth did that. A total shock move. I didn't like the finish of Sunday's Rumble as it didn't give any real moments such as Truth's moment on Raw. Raw's battle royal did a nice job adding suspense. I loved everything except Lawler winning. It's to much. He's had a shot in the TLC match a few months back. He shouldn't headline a ppv, especially one that is prior to Mania. I'd rather see Sheamus or Morrison get that shot. As it is, Lawler will get the opportunity and that's not going to change. We have to deal with it. He's over with the crowd and I'm sure that was a major factor in this decision. I will just have to disagree with it. If it leads to Lawler's first ever Mania match with Cole and Riley, then I might change my mind.
Well that's it for this WWE blogger. I will return next week. Are you still waiting for another round of wrestling mailbag? Well, your chances are slowly dwindling. Email me at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com and maybe you will get in the next one coming to a computer near you. Make sure you're hitting up www.bigbadsportsdaddy.com for all the good stuff we have to offer, I guess that includes the fellas from ShowStoppers.
J Call
Monday, January 31, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Royal Rumble Picks
As much as the WWE has failed to build the Rumble, I'm still pumped for the pay per view. The Rumble match is obviously the main event which is fine. The WWE/WHC are bigger but nothing is bigger than the now 40 guys in the match. I was upset over the addition of 10 men and I don't love the idea. I feel there will be another match thrown together at the last minute, because we never need the whole card announced ever. WWE is simply lazy and it's shown over the last several months. The road to Wrestlemania usually brings out the best of the WWE. If that's the case, we should get some surprises on Sunday.
One quick plug before I get to the Rumble picks. You can email me your opinions on the Rumble or anything in wrestling at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com. Be sure to come back on Tuesday morning for the weekly Raw blog.
Diva Championship Handicap Match
Natalya (c) vs LayCool
Apparently this is a handicap match. I didn't realize they made that announcement on Raw. I'm still pissed to what they did to Melina on Monday night. She should be in this match, not LayCool. Either way it's a Diva match so it doesn't matter in the long run. I hope Awesome Kong debuts. Natalya keeps.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Edge (c) vs Dolph Ziggler
I am perfection!! Perfection! This is the match I'm waiting to see more than anything even over the Rumble match. Dolph Ziggler is going to prove if he can headline, or life as a mid card wrestler. Make it or break it for the young man. Personally, he's my favorite heel in the WWE. The genius move was adding Vicki with Dolph. Vicki adds major heat to anyone she is aligned with. Edge will lead Dolph around in the match, provide the leadership and I believe they will steal the show. Edge keeps in a fantastic match. If you have any doubt about these two individuals putting on a quality match, look no further than right here.
WWE Title
Miz (c) vs. Randy Orton
A heel rarely picks up a clean victory over a face. The Miz gave Orton a severe beat down a few weeks ago on Raw and I loved it. We need to see more of that. The E caters to the faces to often. Don't give us a happy ending every week. You can be like a stripper, give us a good show but we leave pissed off at the end because we didn't get the happy ending. It's okay. Miz needs this win cleanly. Forget Riley or anything other way to screw Orton. Miz should hit his finisher and pin Orton cleanly. I doubt it will happen. Miz keeps the belt by either Orton getting pinned or someone gets dq'd. Either way, Miz keeps the belt.
40 man Battle Royal
28 men have been announced on WWE's website. I believe one of these men will win the Rumble. I'm not going to go down the list because it's pointless. The truth is we are likely to see a few surprises, perhaps a return or two and at the end of the night one man on that list already announced will stand tall. Who will that be? Well it's the guy I've been told no one can hate. It's the guy I've ripped a hundred different ways because guess what? I HATE HIM! You read the Raw blogs and you know who it is. I hate John Cena. I've heard from many fans and even several friends, how can you not like John Cena? He's the Anti-Stone Cold. His jokes are stupid and lame. If I was 12, I would laugh. I'm 27 so I find them retarded. His promos are all the same. Cena gets fired up, yells at the camera and little kids and cougars go wild. They are all the same crap. Oh and what's worst of all is Cena can't sell. Nobody ever looks good wrestling Cena because Cena isn't believable. I give John credit for developing a better repertoire in the ring. He's improved as a wrestler. That doesn't mean he can help the guy on the other side of the ring. He doesn't. Cena is the corporate man. Again, I commend him on doing a million charity things. Even so, I will never ever EEEEEVER like him. It's not going to happen. Go on, tell me I'm wrong. Tell me that Cena is the best thing in wrestling right now. In response, I will tell you that's why the product is suffering. The measuring stick for Cena is Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair. Cena can't hold a candle to those four guys. At the end of the Rumble, Cena will be victorious and it may look like he's a step close to becoming one of them. He's not.
J Call
One quick plug before I get to the Rumble picks. You can email me your opinions on the Rumble or anything in wrestling at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com. Be sure to come back on Tuesday morning for the weekly Raw blog.
Diva Championship Handicap Match
Natalya (c) vs LayCool
Apparently this is a handicap match. I didn't realize they made that announcement on Raw. I'm still pissed to what they did to Melina on Monday night. She should be in this match, not LayCool. Either way it's a Diva match so it doesn't matter in the long run. I hope Awesome Kong debuts. Natalya keeps.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Edge (c) vs Dolph Ziggler
I am perfection!! Perfection! This is the match I'm waiting to see more than anything even over the Rumble match. Dolph Ziggler is going to prove if he can headline, or life as a mid card wrestler. Make it or break it for the young man. Personally, he's my favorite heel in the WWE. The genius move was adding Vicki with Dolph. Vicki adds major heat to anyone she is aligned with. Edge will lead Dolph around in the match, provide the leadership and I believe they will steal the show. Edge keeps in a fantastic match. If you have any doubt about these two individuals putting on a quality match, look no further than right here.
WWE Title
Miz (c) vs. Randy Orton
A heel rarely picks up a clean victory over a face. The Miz gave Orton a severe beat down a few weeks ago on Raw and I loved it. We need to see more of that. The E caters to the faces to often. Don't give us a happy ending every week. You can be like a stripper, give us a good show but we leave pissed off at the end because we didn't get the happy ending. It's okay. Miz needs this win cleanly. Forget Riley or anything other way to screw Orton. Miz should hit his finisher and pin Orton cleanly. I doubt it will happen. Miz keeps the belt by either Orton getting pinned or someone gets dq'd. Either way, Miz keeps the belt.
40 man Battle Royal
28 men have been announced on WWE's website. I believe one of these men will win the Rumble. I'm not going to go down the list because it's pointless. The truth is we are likely to see a few surprises, perhaps a return or two and at the end of the night one man on that list already announced will stand tall. Who will that be? Well it's the guy I've been told no one can hate. It's the guy I've ripped a hundred different ways because guess what? I HATE HIM! You read the Raw blogs and you know who it is. I hate John Cena. I've heard from many fans and even several friends, how can you not like John Cena? He's the Anti-Stone Cold. His jokes are stupid and lame. If I was 12, I would laugh. I'm 27 so I find them retarded. His promos are all the same. Cena gets fired up, yells at the camera and little kids and cougars go wild. They are all the same crap. Oh and what's worst of all is Cena can't sell. Nobody ever looks good wrestling Cena because Cena isn't believable. I give John credit for developing a better repertoire in the ring. He's improved as a wrestler. That doesn't mean he can help the guy on the other side of the ring. He doesn't. Cena is the corporate man. Again, I commend him on doing a million charity things. Even so, I will never ever EEEEEVER like him. It's not going to happen. Go on, tell me I'm wrong. Tell me that Cena is the best thing in wrestling right now. In response, I will tell you that's why the product is suffering. The measuring stick for Cena is Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair. Cena can't hold a candle to those four guys. At the end of the Rumble, Cena will be victorious and it may look like he's a step close to becoming one of them. He's not.
J Call
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Raw 1-24
Since the beginning of the year, Raw has gone downhill. We needed a spark for the Rumble and didn't get anything from Monday night. Raw and this coming Friday Night Smackdown are the last two shows before the second biggest pay per view of the year. The first one was a giant letdown and dare I say boring. The what should have been main event was fantastic. The rest of the show didn't do a damn thing. Raw did add a Diva title match but it was the wrong one. So what the hell happened? A whole lot of nothing.
I kind of forgot about Edge and the GM having their story. You had to know Edge was eliminating those three. I find it really funny fans screamed for Edge to break the computer. I've gotten use to the anonymous GM. I hate Cole and he is a giant tool. However, I can handle the laptop. It doesn't bother me like it use to. Nexus gained a new member last week. We now know he is Mason Ryan, the FCW world champion. Can't we change his name to Matista? They are brothers. I've heard Ryan is very young and green. He's got the physical attributes but I'll wait to crown him the next big thing until I see him wrestle. The Corre is a lame name. They stole it from TNA. I've heard rumors WWE booking a Nexus Corre match at Mania. I'm all for it. I'd love to see a 4 on 4 match. The Corre would have to add one more though since Barrett is taking on Taker, if he's healthy. The opener was too damn long and seemed to get us no where. The announcement of Cena as special ref made me about hurl. I saw enough of that crap last year.
Del Rio and Sheamus created a new odd couple. The WWE has done a nice job of elevating Morrison and Del Rio. I thought Sheamus's push died a little until the King of the Ring. The tournament win brought new life. He was floundering before that win. He's had a great run with Morrison. Come Sunday, Triple H returns to feud with the Irish Ghost. The bigger question is what will happen to Del Rio and Morrison? I'm not sure how fans will feel about Del Rio facing Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania. I think it would be to fast. Still, Smackdown doesn't have a lot of main event players. Del Rio and Ziggler are the two biggest heels and one is headlining the Rumble. Maybe the time is right to allow a young guy like Del Rio to face a veteran Edge. I'm fine with that. The match would be a great contrast in styles. The match wasn't all that terrible. Sheamus or Del Rio should have attacked the other to end the segment. Standing there celebrating was stupid. You are bad guys, attack each other. Prove who is dominant.
The Diva match would have been perfect for Sunday. This is what I meant in the Rumble blog. They add 10 more guys which eliminates time for other things that are more meaningful. They've spent time changing Melina's character and the building the story. Raw provided a crappy 4 minute match between Natalya and Melina. You buried Melina in 5 minutes and turn the momentum straight to LayCool. Look, I like LayCool. They are the best duo on TV. I don't like building up Melina, a quality in and out of the ring performer, and tear her down in one segment. Horrible! LayCool hasn't even been strong on Smackdown. They've lost consecutive weeks to Beth Phoenix. Worst segment of the night.
Edge and Miz, as predicted, had a great match. They gave the champs three segments and none of it disappointed. My only complaint is it didn't end Raw. The match deserved the final spot. Orton received a huge pop from the crowd. I don't think Ziggler should say anything about the backdoor with Vicki around. The ending set everything up nicely for a tag team match on Smackdown. Everyone got involved, just as they should. I understand the Rumble match takes precedents over the WWE/WHC titles. I also know that the winner of the Royal Rumble gets a shot at one of those belts. So which is more important? Hell, taking a look at history, the winner of the Rumble hasn't had good luck in capturing the title at the big event. I will continue to say nothing is more important than those two titles. I'm pumped for both main events scheduled for Sunday. I wonder how Miz will weasel his way to keeping his title and I believe Edge will successfully defend over Ziggler in a show stealing match. Ziggler has proved his worth. This year is really important especially for guys like Ziggler, Miz, Drew, Morrison and a few others. I'll admit I've lost a little interest in wrestling and those guys need to bring me back. I wonder sometimes if they can. After all, the wrestlers are only as good as the writers.
What was more impressive Maryse picking up a victory or Gail Kim getting camera time? Thinking...thinking...moving on.
Husky and McGillicuty received some nice exposure by taking on the tag champs. I guess creating a feud with these four makes to much sense. I'd prefer to see the same match only for the tag titles than having them in the Rumble match. Harris and McGillicuty were my picks as most talented in NXT Season 2. Okay, I didn't watch NXT. Who does? I will keep my eye on those two. Otunga, eh not so much.
Barrett's new music sucks. The Nexus theme worked better with Wade's character. The whole main event was complete crap. No wrestling, Cena acting like an idiot and none of it matter. None! Why, because the Raw GM announces Cena sucked as a ref and changed the entire decision. The only thing the finish accomplished was the same thing it always accomplishes the Monday night before the Rumble, total chaos. Way to book something new writers. I could tell they through the entire show together in a matter of hours. WCW use to do that same thing. Thankfully, Smackdown will save everything since it's been the better show for months. I see people are recognizing that as the ratings have slowly climbed.
I will have my Royal Rumble pick blog up sometime on Thursday. If you want in on the Rumble picks, e-mail me at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com. You better check out ShowStoppers on BBSD for even more Rumble predictions. You can also follow me on blogger.com. The significance on blogger is the Raw blog is usually posted about an hour after Raw. Hot off the presses right after Raw is over with depending on where you live. I'm just trying to live up to the standards of being the best damn WWE blogger on the planet.
J Call
I kind of forgot about Edge and the GM having their story. You had to know Edge was eliminating those three. I find it really funny fans screamed for Edge to break the computer. I've gotten use to the anonymous GM. I hate Cole and he is a giant tool. However, I can handle the laptop. It doesn't bother me like it use to. Nexus gained a new member last week. We now know he is Mason Ryan, the FCW world champion. Can't we change his name to Matista? They are brothers. I've heard Ryan is very young and green. He's got the physical attributes but I'll wait to crown him the next big thing until I see him wrestle. The Corre is a lame name. They stole it from TNA. I've heard rumors WWE booking a Nexus Corre match at Mania. I'm all for it. I'd love to see a 4 on 4 match. The Corre would have to add one more though since Barrett is taking on Taker, if he's healthy. The opener was too damn long and seemed to get us no where. The announcement of Cena as special ref made me about hurl. I saw enough of that crap last year.
Del Rio and Sheamus created a new odd couple. The WWE has done a nice job of elevating Morrison and Del Rio. I thought Sheamus's push died a little until the King of the Ring. The tournament win brought new life. He was floundering before that win. He's had a great run with Morrison. Come Sunday, Triple H returns to feud with the Irish Ghost. The bigger question is what will happen to Del Rio and Morrison? I'm not sure how fans will feel about Del Rio facing Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania. I think it would be to fast. Still, Smackdown doesn't have a lot of main event players. Del Rio and Ziggler are the two biggest heels and one is headlining the Rumble. Maybe the time is right to allow a young guy like Del Rio to face a veteran Edge. I'm fine with that. The match would be a great contrast in styles. The match wasn't all that terrible. Sheamus or Del Rio should have attacked the other to end the segment. Standing there celebrating was stupid. You are bad guys, attack each other. Prove who is dominant.
The Diva match would have been perfect for Sunday. This is what I meant in the Rumble blog. They add 10 more guys which eliminates time for other things that are more meaningful. They've spent time changing Melina's character and the building the story. Raw provided a crappy 4 minute match between Natalya and Melina. You buried Melina in 5 minutes and turn the momentum straight to LayCool. Look, I like LayCool. They are the best duo on TV. I don't like building up Melina, a quality in and out of the ring performer, and tear her down in one segment. Horrible! LayCool hasn't even been strong on Smackdown. They've lost consecutive weeks to Beth Phoenix. Worst segment of the night.
Edge and Miz, as predicted, had a great match. They gave the champs three segments and none of it disappointed. My only complaint is it didn't end Raw. The match deserved the final spot. Orton received a huge pop from the crowd. I don't think Ziggler should say anything about the backdoor with Vicki around. The ending set everything up nicely for a tag team match on Smackdown. Everyone got involved, just as they should. I understand the Rumble match takes precedents over the WWE/WHC titles. I also know that the winner of the Royal Rumble gets a shot at one of those belts. So which is more important? Hell, taking a look at history, the winner of the Rumble hasn't had good luck in capturing the title at the big event. I will continue to say nothing is more important than those two titles. I'm pumped for both main events scheduled for Sunday. I wonder how Miz will weasel his way to keeping his title and I believe Edge will successfully defend over Ziggler in a show stealing match. Ziggler has proved his worth. This year is really important especially for guys like Ziggler, Miz, Drew, Morrison and a few others. I'll admit I've lost a little interest in wrestling and those guys need to bring me back. I wonder sometimes if they can. After all, the wrestlers are only as good as the writers.
What was more impressive Maryse picking up a victory or Gail Kim getting camera time? Thinking...thinking...moving on.
Husky and McGillicuty received some nice exposure by taking on the tag champs. I guess creating a feud with these four makes to much sense. I'd prefer to see the same match only for the tag titles than having them in the Rumble match. Harris and McGillicuty were my picks as most talented in NXT Season 2. Okay, I didn't watch NXT. Who does? I will keep my eye on those two. Otunga, eh not so much.
Barrett's new music sucks. The Nexus theme worked better with Wade's character. The whole main event was complete crap. No wrestling, Cena acting like an idiot and none of it matter. None! Why, because the Raw GM announces Cena sucked as a ref and changed the entire decision. The only thing the finish accomplished was the same thing it always accomplishes the Monday night before the Rumble, total chaos. Way to book something new writers. I could tell they through the entire show together in a matter of hours. WCW use to do that same thing. Thankfully, Smackdown will save everything since it's been the better show for months. I see people are recognizing that as the ratings have slowly climbed.
I will have my Royal Rumble pick blog up sometime on Thursday. If you want in on the Rumble picks, e-mail me at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com. You better check out ShowStoppers on BBSD for even more Rumble predictions. You can also follow me on blogger.com. The significance on blogger is the Raw blog is usually posted about an hour after Raw. Hot off the presses right after Raw is over with depending on where you live. I'm just trying to live up to the standards of being the best damn WWE blogger on the planet.
J Call
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Thirty not Forty
I'm starting to sense a trend in the wrestling world. Everybody seems to want bigger, badder, oh my god I can't believe what I'm seeing twists. So of course when Raw introduced the announcement the Royal Rumble was going from 30 to 40, the entire wrestling world screamed in approval. I, on the other hand, flipped out. I hate it. Where's the tradition? What about history? No, screw that. We don't need anything like that. We need 40 guys in one match. I knew I would be on the other side of the argument. Now, it's my time to prove this is a mistake.
I read the reports of the reasons WWE changed the Rumble. The biggest reason sounded like they felt the Rumble hadn't gained the momentum. You know who is to blame for that? THE WWE WRITERS! In previous weeks, hardly any Superstar talked about winning the over the top battle royal. John Cena was the first mega star to mention it during the opener of Raw, two weeks prior to the event. Great booking. You want a spark and build momentum, start earlier. I give the WWE credit for giving us the World Title Match and WWE Title Match back in the first week of January. They didn't do squat for the Rumble. I mentioned in a Raw blog, create excitement by having qualifying matches. Nope. We don't need those. Instead, they named 21 names so far and that list is a whose who of jobbers and only a few real names that can win. Here's the list:
Alberto Del Rio- glad he is a part of it. First person to even mention he was winning the Rumble.
CM Punk- an obvious choice
"Dashing" Cody Rhodes- mid-level competitor and deserves a spot.
Daniel Bryan- not doing anything else.
Darren Young- oh great, he's alive.
David Hart Smith- feud with Kidd didn't pan out.
David Otunga- all of Nexus is in
Husky Harris- ditto
John Cena- odds on favorite
John Morrison- underdog that has a chance
Mark Henry- need big guys
Michael McGuillicuty- all Nexus
Primo- Why?
R-Truth- another mid-level guy
Rey Mysterio- past winner
Sheamus- has to be in so Triple H can eliminate him
Ted Dibiase Jr.- much like Bryan, he's not doing a thing
Tyson Kidd- should be feuding with Bryan
William Regal- thought he retired
Yoshi Tatsu- thought he was on the future endeavors list
Zack Ryder- soon to be on the future endeavors list.
That's it so far. No wonder the WWE has no momentum for the Rumble. Here's an idea:
Instead of adding 19 more guys, eliminate half the guys on that list and tell us the real participants. Triple H is coming back and we all know it. To create some excitement, they should have announced him already. If you don't want to do that, bring HHH back 6 days prior to the Rumble for added shock value. We see guys return for the Rumble WAY to often. Tell us in advance and we will likely be more pumped to shell out the $50.
So we have to wait to see Triple H. How about Kane, Jericho, Evan Bourne, Barrett or Christian? That's 6 guys right there. We are up to 27 participants if all those guys are going to be in. We have no idea and since it's 40, we have 13 more jobbers to go. I can't wait for Lawler to leave the table and join. Will Ziggler, if he loses to Edge, be able to go in the Rumble? Same for Orton? The WWE has left to many holes to fill. You can't just fill those 19 spots with other crappy guys and think we are going to believe this was somehow a greater feat than past Rumbles just because of more guys. It's not.
The other problem is I can bet that the ring will never get that full. Last year, Cena lasted the longest by staying in almost 20 minutes. I have a feeling this year will be more of the same. I've fully enjoyed Morrison's push on Raw. I felt, before the announcement, he should be introduced in the starting 5 spots and last the entire way until the final four. That's a solid push. He could throw out a few major competitors and fans will react stunned as to say 'we didn't think he had a shot.' After the rumble, fans start looking at Morrison as the real deal. You see that's how you create a star. The longest one might last for about 25 minutes. He might toss a few guys and then one of the big guys are going to come down and clean house.
With 40 guys, you can spread the field, keep the big names apart longer and have smaller guys show off their skills. I understand that. I don't think it will happen. I think 30 men was the perfect number because it doesn't spread out the big names. You need those guys to come out about every 4 or 5 guys. It creates a more on the edge of your seat feel to the battle royal. I have a feeling at the end of the night, your going to wish tradition wasn't dead.
J Call
I read the reports of the reasons WWE changed the Rumble. The biggest reason sounded like they felt the Rumble hadn't gained the momentum. You know who is to blame for that? THE WWE WRITERS! In previous weeks, hardly any Superstar talked about winning the over the top battle royal. John Cena was the first mega star to mention it during the opener of Raw, two weeks prior to the event. Great booking. You want a spark and build momentum, start earlier. I give the WWE credit for giving us the World Title Match and WWE Title Match back in the first week of January. They didn't do squat for the Rumble. I mentioned in a Raw blog, create excitement by having qualifying matches. Nope. We don't need those. Instead, they named 21 names so far and that list is a whose who of jobbers and only a few real names that can win. Here's the list:
Alberto Del Rio- glad he is a part of it. First person to even mention he was winning the Rumble.
CM Punk- an obvious choice
"Dashing" Cody Rhodes- mid-level competitor and deserves a spot.
Daniel Bryan- not doing anything else.
Darren Young- oh great, he's alive.
David Hart Smith- feud with Kidd didn't pan out.
David Otunga- all of Nexus is in
Husky Harris- ditto
John Cena- odds on favorite
John Morrison- underdog that has a chance
Mark Henry- need big guys
Michael McGuillicuty- all Nexus
Primo- Why?
R-Truth- another mid-level guy
Rey Mysterio- past winner
Sheamus- has to be in so Triple H can eliminate him
Ted Dibiase Jr.- much like Bryan, he's not doing a thing
Tyson Kidd- should be feuding with Bryan
William Regal- thought he retired
Yoshi Tatsu- thought he was on the future endeavors list
Zack Ryder- soon to be on the future endeavors list.
That's it so far. No wonder the WWE has no momentum for the Rumble. Here's an idea:
Instead of adding 19 more guys, eliminate half the guys on that list and tell us the real participants. Triple H is coming back and we all know it. To create some excitement, they should have announced him already. If you don't want to do that, bring HHH back 6 days prior to the Rumble for added shock value. We see guys return for the Rumble WAY to often. Tell us in advance and we will likely be more pumped to shell out the $50.
So we have to wait to see Triple H. How about Kane, Jericho, Evan Bourne, Barrett or Christian? That's 6 guys right there. We are up to 27 participants if all those guys are going to be in. We have no idea and since it's 40, we have 13 more jobbers to go. I can't wait for Lawler to leave the table and join. Will Ziggler, if he loses to Edge, be able to go in the Rumble? Same for Orton? The WWE has left to many holes to fill. You can't just fill those 19 spots with other crappy guys and think we are going to believe this was somehow a greater feat than past Rumbles just because of more guys. It's not.
The other problem is I can bet that the ring will never get that full. Last year, Cena lasted the longest by staying in almost 20 minutes. I have a feeling this year will be more of the same. I've fully enjoyed Morrison's push on Raw. I felt, before the announcement, he should be introduced in the starting 5 spots and last the entire way until the final four. That's a solid push. He could throw out a few major competitors and fans will react stunned as to say 'we didn't think he had a shot.' After the rumble, fans start looking at Morrison as the real deal. You see that's how you create a star. The longest one might last for about 25 minutes. He might toss a few guys and then one of the big guys are going to come down and clean house.
With 40 guys, you can spread the field, keep the big names apart longer and have smaller guys show off their skills. I understand that. I don't think it will happen. I think 30 men was the perfect number because it doesn't spread out the big names. You need those guys to come out about every 4 or 5 guys. It creates a more on the edge of your seat feel to the battle royal. I have a feeling at the end of the night, your going to wish tradition wasn't dead.
J Call
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Raw 1-17
I have to admit I was looking forward to a John Cena match. Cena and Punk are having a good story. Raw needed to step up and work on building the Rumble match. I loved the opener on Smackdown because it really showed wrestlers are gearing up for the Rumble. Del Rio, Truth, Rhodes and Rey were talking about the match. I didn't care for Del Rio and Rey being paired in a match but it still managed to get the crowd thinking about the Rumble match. I'd like to see Raw's under card, specifically Morrison, Truth, Sheamus and others to come out and say this year the Rumble is going to be different. The youth movement is taking over and will headline Wrestlemania. I halfway got my wish while one announcement made me furious. I'm a bit under the weather so this blog won't be to long.
Finally, one of the biggest stars talked about the Rumble. I think Cena is the favorite to win it this year. We got a sneak peak at the feud that could brew if Cena and Miz both win in 2 weeks. Why the hell would you change from 30 to 40 wrestlers? That's the dumbest thing I've heard in about 3 weeks on WWE programming. No need to add more stars. There are certain things you don't change. The Royal Rumble match is one of them. I'm all for change and evolution but not when it comes to the 2nd biggest show of the year. Opening segment with Punk, Cena and Miz was highly entertaining. Even though it left a bad taste in my mouth.
Tag team titles got a do-over from last week. I will say I love when the announcer introduces the participants in the ring. The match feels somewhat special. However, the tag match wasn't special. It was too short and no build. The tag division is stale and WWE hasn't invested anything in it. The belts are more of a novelty.
Speaking of novelties, the United States champion was actually in a match this week. Oh my. I've said it before, Smackdown does a great job with their belts. Raw fails big time. Bryan hasn't had a long standing feud since winning the belt from Miz. The Morrison Bryan match was a great effort from both men. I just don't get what the plans are for Bryan. Morrison deserves the push, don't bury a champion at the same time. Sheamus and Bryan would be fun. I don't foresee that because HHH is returning at the Rumble. Why the hell can't you use the whole roster? Zach Ryder isn't doing a thing. Bryan can elevate him. I don't care that I sound like a broken record. I'm tired of seeing talent being underutilized.
Words may not do justice on how I felt for Orton and Ziggler's match. The same could be said on Ziggler and Vicki kissing. Dolph and Randy are two of my favorites. They can headline a main event against each other sometime this year. I was reminded, this past weekend, Ziggler was a cheerleader just a few years ago. I don't remember anyone retooling his lame character into a main eventer. I know guys have changed their character but not that dramatic. None of the Spirit Squad has done anything except Dolph. Another surprising RKO finish. They never showed the replay so it may have been sloppier than I originally thought. It was still a unique way to finish the contest. Miz attack was even sweeter. Great way to show Miz's strength. A heel getting the best of a face is a rarity. I enjoyed the whole segment.
Maryse got to wrestle in a match. Let me say that again, Maryse got to wrestle a match. May not have been that long, it was still a match. Natalya keeps rolling. Melina should get her title shot at the Rumble.
Wow, Ted Dibiase got two minutes to help put over someone else. You see this is why the Rumble didn't need to get bigger. Absolutely none of those guys in that segment will win the Rumble. The Rumble comes down to maybe 6 or 7 guys who can actually win. You add more useless talent to the Rumble. I realize I contradict myself by saying use the roster and then complain they are all going to be used during the Rumble match. Well, if WWE doesn't give two craps about showcasing guys like Ryder in a mini feud. Why the hell do I care if I see them in the Rumble match? I can't wait for Lawler and a bunch of retired guys to come out only to be thrown out in less than 2 minutes. Last year, nobody lasted that long in the Rumble match. This year, I feel the same is going to happen. The ring isn't going to fill up, you'll see 8 maybe 10 guys at the same time and that's it. Bad idea, WWE. Sheamus and Del Rio could have been the exception in the segment. They have a shot to win. Del Rio seems to show up at the best times. Alberto said one thing that I think can come true. He said he's going to be a champion at Wrestlemania. That could easily come true. Kofi and Del Rio could tangle for the IC title. Kofi is likely to be in the MITB match. I don't see a baby face he could drop the belt to on Smackdown. Unless you give the belt to Rey and we are all tired of Rey vs. Del Rio.
I usually hate when the main event isn't driven on the WWE title. I said in the 1st sentence, I was waiting for the Cena Punk match. They did an excellent job. This might have been Punk's biggest match. He's headlined pay per views before with Jeff Hardy. Cena is a little bit bigger than Jeff Hardy. Punk held his own. WWE got a new Batista. Are they brothers? The guy looked exactly like him. The finish was confusing as hell. Nexus adds a member and he's a giant.
Raw was up and down. The two big matches didn't disappoint, everything else did. At least they started building up the Rumble. Then again, 40 guys is retarded. No need to add to an already historic match. I'm sure we will get more info on the Nexus member by middle of the week. The Internet wrestling community will dig up the history on that kid. We, at BBSD, feel we are a big part of the IWC. Check out Showstoppers and if you want to be part of the next wrestling mailbag, e-mail me at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com
J Call
Finally, one of the biggest stars talked about the Rumble. I think Cena is the favorite to win it this year. We got a sneak peak at the feud that could brew if Cena and Miz both win in 2 weeks. Why the hell would you change from 30 to 40 wrestlers? That's the dumbest thing I've heard in about 3 weeks on WWE programming. No need to add more stars. There are certain things you don't change. The Royal Rumble match is one of them. I'm all for change and evolution but not when it comes to the 2nd biggest show of the year. Opening segment with Punk, Cena and Miz was highly entertaining. Even though it left a bad taste in my mouth.
Tag team titles got a do-over from last week. I will say I love when the announcer introduces the participants in the ring. The match feels somewhat special. However, the tag match wasn't special. It was too short and no build. The tag division is stale and WWE hasn't invested anything in it. The belts are more of a novelty.
Speaking of novelties, the United States champion was actually in a match this week. Oh my. I've said it before, Smackdown does a great job with their belts. Raw fails big time. Bryan hasn't had a long standing feud since winning the belt from Miz. The Morrison Bryan match was a great effort from both men. I just don't get what the plans are for Bryan. Morrison deserves the push, don't bury a champion at the same time. Sheamus and Bryan would be fun. I don't foresee that because HHH is returning at the Rumble. Why the hell can't you use the whole roster? Zach Ryder isn't doing a thing. Bryan can elevate him. I don't care that I sound like a broken record. I'm tired of seeing talent being underutilized.
Words may not do justice on how I felt for Orton and Ziggler's match. The same could be said on Ziggler and Vicki kissing. Dolph and Randy are two of my favorites. They can headline a main event against each other sometime this year. I was reminded, this past weekend, Ziggler was a cheerleader just a few years ago. I don't remember anyone retooling his lame character into a main eventer. I know guys have changed their character but not that dramatic. None of the Spirit Squad has done anything except Dolph. Another surprising RKO finish. They never showed the replay so it may have been sloppier than I originally thought. It was still a unique way to finish the contest. Miz attack was even sweeter. Great way to show Miz's strength. A heel getting the best of a face is a rarity. I enjoyed the whole segment.
Maryse got to wrestle in a match. Let me say that again, Maryse got to wrestle a match. May not have been that long, it was still a match. Natalya keeps rolling. Melina should get her title shot at the Rumble.
Wow, Ted Dibiase got two minutes to help put over someone else. You see this is why the Rumble didn't need to get bigger. Absolutely none of those guys in that segment will win the Rumble. The Rumble comes down to maybe 6 or 7 guys who can actually win. You add more useless talent to the Rumble. I realize I contradict myself by saying use the roster and then complain they are all going to be used during the Rumble match. Well, if WWE doesn't give two craps about showcasing guys like Ryder in a mini feud. Why the hell do I care if I see them in the Rumble match? I can't wait for Lawler and a bunch of retired guys to come out only to be thrown out in less than 2 minutes. Last year, nobody lasted that long in the Rumble match. This year, I feel the same is going to happen. The ring isn't going to fill up, you'll see 8 maybe 10 guys at the same time and that's it. Bad idea, WWE. Sheamus and Del Rio could have been the exception in the segment. They have a shot to win. Del Rio seems to show up at the best times. Alberto said one thing that I think can come true. He said he's going to be a champion at Wrestlemania. That could easily come true. Kofi and Del Rio could tangle for the IC title. Kofi is likely to be in the MITB match. I don't see a baby face he could drop the belt to on Smackdown. Unless you give the belt to Rey and we are all tired of Rey vs. Del Rio.
I usually hate when the main event isn't driven on the WWE title. I said in the 1st sentence, I was waiting for the Cena Punk match. They did an excellent job. This might have been Punk's biggest match. He's headlined pay per views before with Jeff Hardy. Cena is a little bit bigger than Jeff Hardy. Punk held his own. WWE got a new Batista. Are they brothers? The guy looked exactly like him. The finish was confusing as hell. Nexus adds a member and he's a giant.
Raw was up and down. The two big matches didn't disappoint, everything else did. At least they started building up the Rumble. Then again, 40 guys is retarded. No need to add to an already historic match. I'm sure we will get more info on the Nexus member by middle of the week. The Internet wrestling community will dig up the history on that kid. We, at BBSD, feel we are a big part of the IWC. Check out Showstoppers and if you want to be part of the next wrestling mailbag, e-mail me at jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com
J Call
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Raw 1-10
After one week of 2011, I'm ready to crown this year better than 2010. Smackdown was an excellent show. What made last week so great? Both shows contained an emphasis on wrestling. A novel concept, wrestling shows with lots of wrestling. I'll talk more about our new IC champion and number one contender for the WHC later. I had no clue what to expect from Raw before it aired. I got a rude awakening from the new Nexus and I wasn't sure how the WWE would show Cena. The way they handled it was fine since Cena wasn't the focal point all show. The build to the Rumble sort of continued in what was a very confusing effort.
The WWE tag champs coming out first was a surprise. I would have rather saw a tag match to build the tag teams up a little. Don't get me wrong, I like the new Nexus (until this episode). Punk makes them better. I'd just preferred to see a tag team championship match 1st and have Punk and Nexus later. I didn't want to see Raw become the Cena show. Last week, Raw was a better show as they worked around all the wrestling. The whole initiation process confused everyone even the crowd. Do you boo or cheer? Most looked on with astonishment. I had no idea. As Lawler put it, "bizarre". It didn't really grab my attention. The Nexus needs some opponents. I think we might see that with Gabriel and Slater walking away from Punk towards the end of Raw. Maybe they team with Cena to fight Punk and the other boys.
Del Rio cross feuding against R-Truth is great. I know I said that last week but this week was even better. I'll talk more about the surprise guest later. I'm starting to fall for Del Rio and his character. The best thing is he won't be fighting Rey any longer. He's the only competitor that has come out and talked about the Rumble. The shows from now on should be focusing on the Rumble match. Anyway, Del Rio and Truth put on a nice contest. Obviously Truth is jobbing and helping Alberto get over with the Raw crowd. The count out was weak as was the 3rd fall on Smackdown. Still, it helps Del Rio. He's a weasel and gets a win. The one thing WWE needs to do is add another Lucha Libra wrestler. Masked wrestlers are fading fast. I'd like to see an influx of cruiserweights and Luchas. WCW did very well with those wrestlers. I'm not saying add 15 or 20. I'd say 4 or 5 would be enough. Rey's not going to last forever. Del Rio doesn't fit the bill. Rey could pass it a long to someone young. No more mask vs mask or anything stupid. It would bring something fresh and Smackdown would write them in. I'm beating a dead horse but Superstars could be devoted to cruiserweights. They already have enough on the roster for their own division. Instead of calling it cruiserweights, bring back the Euro title. You have weight limits on cruiserweights. The European wouldn't have a weight limit so any wrestler can compete for the belt. Superstars could use it along with the tag titles.
They need to stop putting King in matches. I was all for it when he got a title shot. It helped Miz. Now, it's dragged on too long. The Nexus thing is to stupid to talk about. I figured Raw wouldn't have much wrestling. Last week was enough for the month.
I watched Superstars last week for the fact to see Dibiase and Bryan. No reason for them to be left off Raw. Tag match was too short and heels lose again. Kidd and Dibiase are being buried and Kidd's bodyguard isn't even on TV. I won't ever understand why heels don't win cleanly anymore. Wins and losses aren't as important in the eyes of fans. Heels can win and not hurt faces. Case in point was Friday night. Ziggler lost cleanly to Kofi (twice) and ended up winning the number one contender for Edge's title. The problem was Ziggler beat a heel, Rhodes. I'm happy Ziggler won and is getting pushed. You can compare Ziggler to Morrison in terms of their pushes respectively. Some hate the fact Morrison isn't being headlined and Ziggler is. If done correctly, Morrison will get a bigger push being in the Rumble. You couldn't have both being elevated in the same match. I do believe for Smackdown Ziggler getting the rub helps the overall product. Smackdown has been Kane, Edge, Rey and Del Rio in some sort of fashion since June. It's time for a change (who said that?). Vikki and Edge have a history and practically writes itself. I'm more of a fan of how Morrison is getting there but it will help both men in the grand scheme of things.
Speaking of Morrison, the more things change, the more they stay the same. We've seen Morrison and Sheamus. I don't mind though since they are doing nothing else. I thought Raw would start some new stories. I realize the Rumble kinda holds the bigger picture in January. You don't have many payoffs to one on one matches. That's fine as there's ways around to make things interesting. The Raw GM should start booking qualifying matches. Sheamus and Morrison get automatic bids but face each other for a number. Say the winner gets a spot between 25 to 30 and the loser gets a one of the first five numbers. You see it adds a new wrinkle to something we've witnessed time and time again. You see that wasn't hard to come up with an idea. I will say I enjoyed the match. Morrison played the underdog and got the fans to sympathize with him. I've read a lot of opinions to move him to a heel. I don't think that's a good idea. The face character is working. Morrison is gaining steam and becoming a lot like the WWE's Jeff Hardy (You know without the cigarettes). Morrison will make big money once he wins a World belt. I'd actually rather see Morrison lose at Mania in the Money in the Bank match. That is if he's a part of it. Miz and Morrison need to take separate paths and having them both win their 1st title using the briefcase is lame.
The build for the 1st inductee led everyone to believe it was Shawn Michaels. It's not surprising Shawn's getting in the 1st year. I named him the greatest wrestler of all time. I think we all believed he would wrestle one more match. The bigger surprise was Shawn showed up in Tennessee. You can tell how much he's missed. You hear that pop Triple H. Get your ass back in front of the damn camera. HBK should be the General Manager. That's what I was hoping he would announce. Instead, he didn't say a work and didn't need to. I loved Del Rio coming out. The mood changed once Shawn came out. This is why he shouldn't have walked away. He had years left in that body. He couldn't accomplish more except help get younger talent over. One thing's certain he can still captivate an audience and deliver a sweet sweet chin music.
I didn't know WWE fans wanted to see someone die. Yeah Punk leap to your death, very PG. Wow, Cena said ass and my ears didn't bleed. I guess the WWE might start to become a little edgier with their language. About time! I took that and there match next week from all the crap. At least, there will be a match. I suspect Nexus won't help Punk much after the beat downs they received.
Cole like a moron inducted Miz in the HOF already. Lawler is in and if one guy in that main event will make the Hall it's the Viper. Have you noticed Randy Orton isn't spreading his arms any longer. He changed to the Austin two arm raise and added the Lou Thez press. I don't mind using it but Orton should keep his character as his own. Keep your own mannerisms. Miz keeps playing his role well. He's the beatable mouthy champion. Main even was predictable. Lawler wins and once again the heels look terrible. This needs to be the final week Lawler gets in the ring. It's stale. The good part was Miz didn't receive the pin fall, although walking away like a coward doesn't help. The great thing was the WWE title being part of the finish. This needs to continue every week. It won't as Cena and Punk will likely be the main event next week.
Raw kept on rolling towards the Rumble. I know you couldn't tell. I think it was mentioned once during the broadcast. Hopefully some WWE writer reads this blog and steals my idea. I won't be mad. Next week, Punk and Cena should be fun. Orton and Miz will keep going and Daniel Bryan will do nothing. If you want to hear more hot wrestling opinions, check out John on Showstoppers, oh and Larry too heard only on BBSD. I'll have another round of wrestling questions in the next mailbag and I want to hear from YOU! E-mail any questions to jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com and it might make it on the Royal Rumble picks and mailbag blog out later in the month.
J Call
The WWE tag champs coming out first was a surprise. I would have rather saw a tag match to build the tag teams up a little. Don't get me wrong, I like the new Nexus (until this episode). Punk makes them better. I'd just preferred to see a tag team championship match 1st and have Punk and Nexus later. I didn't want to see Raw become the Cena show. Last week, Raw was a better show as they worked around all the wrestling. The whole initiation process confused everyone even the crowd. Do you boo or cheer? Most looked on with astonishment. I had no idea. As Lawler put it, "bizarre". It didn't really grab my attention. The Nexus needs some opponents. I think we might see that with Gabriel and Slater walking away from Punk towards the end of Raw. Maybe they team with Cena to fight Punk and the other boys.
Del Rio cross feuding against R-Truth is great. I know I said that last week but this week was even better. I'll talk more about the surprise guest later. I'm starting to fall for Del Rio and his character. The best thing is he won't be fighting Rey any longer. He's the only competitor that has come out and talked about the Rumble. The shows from now on should be focusing on the Rumble match. Anyway, Del Rio and Truth put on a nice contest. Obviously Truth is jobbing and helping Alberto get over with the Raw crowd. The count out was weak as was the 3rd fall on Smackdown. Still, it helps Del Rio. He's a weasel and gets a win. The one thing WWE needs to do is add another Lucha Libra wrestler. Masked wrestlers are fading fast. I'd like to see an influx of cruiserweights and Luchas. WCW did very well with those wrestlers. I'm not saying add 15 or 20. I'd say 4 or 5 would be enough. Rey's not going to last forever. Del Rio doesn't fit the bill. Rey could pass it a long to someone young. No more mask vs mask or anything stupid. It would bring something fresh and Smackdown would write them in. I'm beating a dead horse but Superstars could be devoted to cruiserweights. They already have enough on the roster for their own division. Instead of calling it cruiserweights, bring back the Euro title. You have weight limits on cruiserweights. The European wouldn't have a weight limit so any wrestler can compete for the belt. Superstars could use it along with the tag titles.
They need to stop putting King in matches. I was all for it when he got a title shot. It helped Miz. Now, it's dragged on too long. The Nexus thing is to stupid to talk about. I figured Raw wouldn't have much wrestling. Last week was enough for the month.
I watched Superstars last week for the fact to see Dibiase and Bryan. No reason for them to be left off Raw. Tag match was too short and heels lose again. Kidd and Dibiase are being buried and Kidd's bodyguard isn't even on TV. I won't ever understand why heels don't win cleanly anymore. Wins and losses aren't as important in the eyes of fans. Heels can win and not hurt faces. Case in point was Friday night. Ziggler lost cleanly to Kofi (twice) and ended up winning the number one contender for Edge's title. The problem was Ziggler beat a heel, Rhodes. I'm happy Ziggler won and is getting pushed. You can compare Ziggler to Morrison in terms of their pushes respectively. Some hate the fact Morrison isn't being headlined and Ziggler is. If done correctly, Morrison will get a bigger push being in the Rumble. You couldn't have both being elevated in the same match. I do believe for Smackdown Ziggler getting the rub helps the overall product. Smackdown has been Kane, Edge, Rey and Del Rio in some sort of fashion since June. It's time for a change (who said that?). Vikki and Edge have a history and practically writes itself. I'm more of a fan of how Morrison is getting there but it will help both men in the grand scheme of things.
Speaking of Morrison, the more things change, the more they stay the same. We've seen Morrison and Sheamus. I don't mind though since they are doing nothing else. I thought Raw would start some new stories. I realize the Rumble kinda holds the bigger picture in January. You don't have many payoffs to one on one matches. That's fine as there's ways around to make things interesting. The Raw GM should start booking qualifying matches. Sheamus and Morrison get automatic bids but face each other for a number. Say the winner gets a spot between 25 to 30 and the loser gets a one of the first five numbers. You see it adds a new wrinkle to something we've witnessed time and time again. You see that wasn't hard to come up with an idea. I will say I enjoyed the match. Morrison played the underdog and got the fans to sympathize with him. I've read a lot of opinions to move him to a heel. I don't think that's a good idea. The face character is working. Morrison is gaining steam and becoming a lot like the WWE's Jeff Hardy (You know without the cigarettes). Morrison will make big money once he wins a World belt. I'd actually rather see Morrison lose at Mania in the Money in the Bank match. That is if he's a part of it. Miz and Morrison need to take separate paths and having them both win their 1st title using the briefcase is lame.
The build for the 1st inductee led everyone to believe it was Shawn Michaels. It's not surprising Shawn's getting in the 1st year. I named him the greatest wrestler of all time. I think we all believed he would wrestle one more match. The bigger surprise was Shawn showed up in Tennessee. You can tell how much he's missed. You hear that pop Triple H. Get your ass back in front of the damn camera. HBK should be the General Manager. That's what I was hoping he would announce. Instead, he didn't say a work and didn't need to. I loved Del Rio coming out. The mood changed once Shawn came out. This is why he shouldn't have walked away. He had years left in that body. He couldn't accomplish more except help get younger talent over. One thing's certain he can still captivate an audience and deliver a sweet sweet chin music.
I didn't know WWE fans wanted to see someone die. Yeah Punk leap to your death, very PG. Wow, Cena said ass and my ears didn't bleed. I guess the WWE might start to become a little edgier with their language. About time! I took that and there match next week from all the crap. At least, there will be a match. I suspect Nexus won't help Punk much after the beat downs they received.
Cole like a moron inducted Miz in the HOF already. Lawler is in and if one guy in that main event will make the Hall it's the Viper. Have you noticed Randy Orton isn't spreading his arms any longer. He changed to the Austin two arm raise and added the Lou Thez press. I don't mind using it but Orton should keep his character as his own. Keep your own mannerisms. Miz keeps playing his role well. He's the beatable mouthy champion. Main even was predictable. Lawler wins and once again the heels look terrible. This needs to be the final week Lawler gets in the ring. It's stale. The good part was Miz didn't receive the pin fall, although walking away like a coward doesn't help. The great thing was the WWE title being part of the finish. This needs to continue every week. It won't as Cena and Punk will likely be the main event next week.
Raw kept on rolling towards the Rumble. I know you couldn't tell. I think it was mentioned once during the broadcast. Hopefully some WWE writer reads this blog and steals my idea. I won't be mad. Next week, Punk and Cena should be fun. Orton and Miz will keep going and Daniel Bryan will do nothing. If you want to hear more hot wrestling opinions, check out John on Showstoppers, oh and Larry too heard only on BBSD. I'll have another round of wrestling questions in the next mailbag and I want to hear from YOU! E-mail any questions to jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com and it might make it on the Royal Rumble picks and mailbag blog out later in the month.
J Call
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Groundhog Day
One year ago, I wasn't a happy Raider fan. Tom Cable hadn't proved anything. Darren McFadden was on the verge of bust. Jamarcus Russell's waist size was on the verge of exploding. The team was a complete mess and then something happened. The players started to rally around Cable. The draft was praised because Oakland drafted quality football players. The best thing to happen was signing offensive coordinator Hue Jackson (it may end up being the worst thing.) The team started to perform. Flash forward to Sunday January, 2nd, 2011 and I couldn't have been happier for an 8-8 season. The team came together under Cable and Jackson. Two days later, Cable is fired and the Raiders are back...as the laughing stock of the league.
If you take a closer look at this season, you will find the Oakland Raiders played great football throughout the season. They had three losses that were inexcusable. I blame the organization for the loss against Arizona, Miami and San Francisco. Other than that, the season was a success. Hard to believe an 8-8 season is called a success but it is the Raiders. I will take 3 no shows over 11. Oakland improved in dramatic fashion on both sides of the ball. The offense, even with the carousel at quarterback, put up huge numbers. McFadden showed signs of brilliance, averaged over 5 yards a carry and ended up with over 1,100 rushing yards. The team average of 354.6 yards a game was 10th in the league. As I mentioned in the season preview, the Wide Receivers were the most important. They didn't help out consistently but still managed to help Campbell reach his 2nd highest career qb rating. Hue should receive a ton of credit for how the offense performed. I'm not ready to give him the head coaching job and fire the guy who seems to have the backing of all the players. Cable is a players coach. They loved him and you don't push away a guy the team loves, unless he's not getting results. Cable was getting results and they were improving. John Marshall was getting the defense turned around as well. They ranked 2nd in passing yards allowed. Even if the rushing defense was the best, 29th in the league, and yet finished 11th overall. This team was moving towards getting to the playoffs next season. The time wasn't right to turn a 180 and go the complete opposite direction.
One big thing was the locker rooms love for Cable. You can't have a mutiny. Shane Lechler has played through 6 coaches since 2000. He came out with a great quote, "I just want to know what the hell is going on ... how do you justify firing somebody when you just went 6-0 in the division and 8-8 in the season after we put in so much as a group, as a unit, as a team with our leader being Tom Cable. He later said, "I can't go through another head coach." Man I sure am pumped after hearing that. I mean how can I not be ready for next year. The players have a right to be pissed. I understood firing Kiffin, Shell and Callahan. They stunk! Gruden was traded because Al is crazy. Cable was fired because Al is crazy. I believe I have said this before and it's worth mentioning again, being a Raider fan is like watching Groundhog Day and Weekend at Bernie's combined.
Nobody knows what's going to happen. My guess is he will hire Hue Jackson. If I'm Hue, I run for my life. The 49ers are looking at him as well. I would run across the bay to San Fran. They aren't as messed up as the Raiders. If I'm a free agent, I sign anywhere. You might as well jump ship before the captain rams it into a giant glacier Titanic style. I'm certain the ship is already going down. I just have to wait to see how quickly.
If you take a closer look at this season, you will find the Oakland Raiders played great football throughout the season. They had three losses that were inexcusable. I blame the organization for the loss against Arizona, Miami and San Francisco. Other than that, the season was a success. Hard to believe an 8-8 season is called a success but it is the Raiders. I will take 3 no shows over 11. Oakland improved in dramatic fashion on both sides of the ball. The offense, even with the carousel at quarterback, put up huge numbers. McFadden showed signs of brilliance, averaged over 5 yards a carry and ended up with over 1,100 rushing yards. The team average of 354.6 yards a game was 10th in the league. As I mentioned in the season preview, the Wide Receivers were the most important. They didn't help out consistently but still managed to help Campbell reach his 2nd highest career qb rating. Hue should receive a ton of credit for how the offense performed. I'm not ready to give him the head coaching job and fire the guy who seems to have the backing of all the players. Cable is a players coach. They loved him and you don't push away a guy the team loves, unless he's not getting results. Cable was getting results and they were improving. John Marshall was getting the defense turned around as well. They ranked 2nd in passing yards allowed. Even if the rushing defense was the best, 29th in the league, and yet finished 11th overall. This team was moving towards getting to the playoffs next season. The time wasn't right to turn a 180 and go the complete opposite direction.
One big thing was the locker rooms love for Cable. You can't have a mutiny. Shane Lechler has played through 6 coaches since 2000. He came out with a great quote, "I just want to know what the hell is going on ... how do you justify firing somebody when you just went 6-0 in the division and 8-8 in the season after we put in so much as a group, as a unit, as a team with our leader being Tom Cable. He later said, "I can't go through another head coach." Man I sure am pumped after hearing that. I mean how can I not be ready for next year. The players have a right to be pissed. I understood firing Kiffin, Shell and Callahan. They stunk! Gruden was traded because Al is crazy. Cable was fired because Al is crazy. I believe I have said this before and it's worth mentioning again, being a Raider fan is like watching Groundhog Day and Weekend at Bernie's combined.
Nobody knows what's going to happen. My guess is he will hire Hue Jackson. If I'm Hue, I run for my life. The 49ers are looking at him as well. I would run across the bay to San Fran. They aren't as messed up as the Raiders. If I'm a free agent, I sign anywhere. You might as well jump ship before the captain rams it into a giant glacier Titanic style. I'm certain the ship is already going down. I just have to wait to see how quickly.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Raw 1-3
The real WWE blogger on BBSD and the best damn WWE blogger on the planet is BACK! I know you missed me. In all seriousness, Larry did an okay job. He's blinded by love of Morrison, other than that it was a fine effort. But this Raw and the 2011 year needs to be kicked off the correct way, with me. This Raw was the most important in terms of the next 3 months. Royal Rumble takes the focus and perhaps the return of some big names to help build. You can tell the WWE is taking this first week very serious. Raw starts off with a WWE title match. Smackdown has scheduled a 2 out of 3 falls contest and a last man standing World heavyweight championship match. It feels like a pay per view only spread all week. Normally, I have a lot to say especially when I miss a blog. I do have things on my mind and I'll spread them around throughout the blog. For now, it's on to a great Raw to start the new year.
2011 didn't start out well with Michael Cole being the first thing we saw. No reason to bitch, he's not going anywhere. I wasn't happy Lawler and Miz fought last week, still Miz gained more heat after the attack so job well done. I feel the match made more sense on Raw then at the Rumble. Hear me out before you stop reading. Royal Rumble is the 2nd largest ppv of the year, only Mania is bigger. Morrison deserves this push and I'm happy for him. He's just not a big enough name yet to headline Rumble in a WWE title match. I know he's a great wrestler. He will headline a pay per view this year. Let's hold off on promoting him over Cena or Orton as the face of Raw. He's proving he deserves to be ranked high, not that high. Plus, say he lost to the Miz at the Rumble. The loss won't help him as much as say being one of the first men in the Rumble and in the final 5. You see that will help him more than a simple loss at the Rumble. Fans will respect him more and start seeing him in the main event picture. Raw certainly helped his case. The match was fantastic. They used the environment well and had several near falls. Matches need to use near falls more often. The close finishes build excitement for fans. The Starship pain through a table was a sick spot. There was no doubt Miz would retain. Morrison proved he's earning his rank. One thing for sure, neither man is "Marty Jannetty." Sorry Marty.
I didn't care for the Diva match finish. Melina shouldn't be getting pinned by anyone except Natalya. I'd much rather see Fox get beat. She hasn't been doing squat. Melina needs to look strong and the complete opposite happened.
Tag match was a cluster since Kozlov goofed it up towards the end. The good thing is Uso's won and maybe an upcoming title shot. Tamina might turn on Santino and develop a real story. Otherwise, pretty meaningless like a college bowl game.
I'm on the fence about Punk and Nexus. I love Punk and you can't just throw Nexus on Smackdown. You used them for a half the year. Nexus was built up as a quality stable. If you toss them aside, you admit you failed. I don't think Nexus has failed. You don't disband them until you have a good excuse (the draft) or create a story that breaks them up for good. Neither has happened yet. So, what do you do? Well, end the story with Barrett and Cena, keep Nexus together and develop something new. This is new and different. Yes, I'd like to see Nexus move past Cena. They will soon as evident in the main event. Barrett coming back and getting involved will work towards something new. The problem is Wade isn't a face. You can't make him a face. Hopefully, he (and only him) isn't on Raw to long if he has to be a face.
Last week, Smackdown had some great action. Del Rio was part of a fantastic tag match with Edge and Rey. Rio has grown on me. He's a great in ring performer and mic skills has improved since day one. I can't wait for the 2 out of 3 falls against Rey Friday night. I know the feud has lasted too long and should have ended a month ago. Friday night will cap it off 80's style. Truth should feud with Dibiase. Those two are floating around doing nothing. Dibiase has been hosed for months. A small story will develop some sort of relevance on the show. Del Rio coming to Raw is a big perk of the Rumble, lots of cross promoting.
I normally complain about the WWE title not being the focal point at the end of Raw. I feel the same way on Smackdown. However, this past Friday I loved the IC title finished the show. You didn't even see the U.S. champion on Raw. Smackdown does a great job of the mid card title seem very important. They have plenty of wrestlers competing for a shot at the belt. Raw never does that. I don't recall ever having a United States title match ending the show. It never happens. Raw writers couldn't even fit Bryan on one of those stupid Bella twin backstage skits. The title has little meaning where as the IC belt is right there with the WWE and WHC. This is why I continue to complain about Dibiase not doing anything. Bryan and Dibiase never had a real feud. There are plenty of under carders that can be pushed with Bryan. Hell, give one of the Nexus guys a shot. Do something!
The obvious choice to win the main event was Orton. A heel on heel feud doesn't work. Last year, Sheamus and Orton headlined the Rumble but Orton was a half face already. The writing was on the wall that at Mania he would be a face. Raw provided plenty of time for 3 competitors to paint a beautiful wrestling picture inside the cage. The match didn't feel cheap without blood. I know fans want that and so do I. A wrestler cutting himself and making the match feel more intense is great. However, as witnessed by the main event, you don't need it to give us a compelling and believable story. Punk interfering works to our advantage. Again, this pushes the story away from Cena and towards Barrett. Sheamus in the mean time is in limbo. Triple H has to come back shortly. He is the only thing for Sheamus to get in to. Perhaps Trips will wait until the Rumble and eliminate him and the Irish Ghost. Orton and Miz weren't done and it felt like we need one more match to finally finish the story. Orton saying he will be more brutal in 2011 is great. I'd like to see Orton put his boot on the skull of Riley at the Rumble. Riley costs him the match and in an act of rage, Orton punts Riley. Randy is the face of Raw and the best performer which is why he faces Miz at the Rumble. Plus, he can put Miz over even more.
Raw showed focus, further developed stories and gave time to develop 3 quality in ring performances. The show was great and I didn't miss Cena one bit. I'm sure a lot of you did and hate the fact he was off the show. I didn't. I haven't liked Cena for years and felt tonight was a perfect example of how Raw could be a better show without him. Send your hate mail to jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com for that last comment. The WWE title was a major player tonight. A lot of times, Cena is the main focal point. Raw needs to focus more on the titles and less on one man. My only real complaint about Raw was they forgot Daniel Bryan. Other than that, I thought the show was excellent. The first year of 2011 starts out with a bang and I can't think of a better place to be than writing for you on BBSD. Make sure you check out Showstoppers and keep sending me your e-mails as another wrestling mailbag will return sometime in January. Happy New Year! Wooooo!
J Call
2011 didn't start out well with Michael Cole being the first thing we saw. No reason to bitch, he's not going anywhere. I wasn't happy Lawler and Miz fought last week, still Miz gained more heat after the attack so job well done. I feel the match made more sense on Raw then at the Rumble. Hear me out before you stop reading. Royal Rumble is the 2nd largest ppv of the year, only Mania is bigger. Morrison deserves this push and I'm happy for him. He's just not a big enough name yet to headline Rumble in a WWE title match. I know he's a great wrestler. He will headline a pay per view this year. Let's hold off on promoting him over Cena or Orton as the face of Raw. He's proving he deserves to be ranked high, not that high. Plus, say he lost to the Miz at the Rumble. The loss won't help him as much as say being one of the first men in the Rumble and in the final 5. You see that will help him more than a simple loss at the Rumble. Fans will respect him more and start seeing him in the main event picture. Raw certainly helped his case. The match was fantastic. They used the environment well and had several near falls. Matches need to use near falls more often. The close finishes build excitement for fans. The Starship pain through a table was a sick spot. There was no doubt Miz would retain. Morrison proved he's earning his rank. One thing for sure, neither man is "Marty Jannetty." Sorry Marty.
I didn't care for the Diva match finish. Melina shouldn't be getting pinned by anyone except Natalya. I'd much rather see Fox get beat. She hasn't been doing squat. Melina needs to look strong and the complete opposite happened.
Tag match was a cluster since Kozlov goofed it up towards the end. The good thing is Uso's won and maybe an upcoming title shot. Tamina might turn on Santino and develop a real story. Otherwise, pretty meaningless like a college bowl game.
I'm on the fence about Punk and Nexus. I love Punk and you can't just throw Nexus on Smackdown. You used them for a half the year. Nexus was built up as a quality stable. If you toss them aside, you admit you failed. I don't think Nexus has failed. You don't disband them until you have a good excuse (the draft) or create a story that breaks them up for good. Neither has happened yet. So, what do you do? Well, end the story with Barrett and Cena, keep Nexus together and develop something new. This is new and different. Yes, I'd like to see Nexus move past Cena. They will soon as evident in the main event. Barrett coming back and getting involved will work towards something new. The problem is Wade isn't a face. You can't make him a face. Hopefully, he (and only him) isn't on Raw to long if he has to be a face.
Last week, Smackdown had some great action. Del Rio was part of a fantastic tag match with Edge and Rey. Rio has grown on me. He's a great in ring performer and mic skills has improved since day one. I can't wait for the 2 out of 3 falls against Rey Friday night. I know the feud has lasted too long and should have ended a month ago. Friday night will cap it off 80's style. Truth should feud with Dibiase. Those two are floating around doing nothing. Dibiase has been hosed for months. A small story will develop some sort of relevance on the show. Del Rio coming to Raw is a big perk of the Rumble, lots of cross promoting.
I normally complain about the WWE title not being the focal point at the end of Raw. I feel the same way on Smackdown. However, this past Friday I loved the IC title finished the show. You didn't even see the U.S. champion on Raw. Smackdown does a great job of the mid card title seem very important. They have plenty of wrestlers competing for a shot at the belt. Raw never does that. I don't recall ever having a United States title match ending the show. It never happens. Raw writers couldn't even fit Bryan on one of those stupid Bella twin backstage skits. The title has little meaning where as the IC belt is right there with the WWE and WHC. This is why I continue to complain about Dibiase not doing anything. Bryan and Dibiase never had a real feud. There are plenty of under carders that can be pushed with Bryan. Hell, give one of the Nexus guys a shot. Do something!
The obvious choice to win the main event was Orton. A heel on heel feud doesn't work. Last year, Sheamus and Orton headlined the Rumble but Orton was a half face already. The writing was on the wall that at Mania he would be a face. Raw provided plenty of time for 3 competitors to paint a beautiful wrestling picture inside the cage. The match didn't feel cheap without blood. I know fans want that and so do I. A wrestler cutting himself and making the match feel more intense is great. However, as witnessed by the main event, you don't need it to give us a compelling and believable story. Punk interfering works to our advantage. Again, this pushes the story away from Cena and towards Barrett. Sheamus in the mean time is in limbo. Triple H has to come back shortly. He is the only thing for Sheamus to get in to. Perhaps Trips will wait until the Rumble and eliminate him and the Irish Ghost. Orton and Miz weren't done and it felt like we need one more match to finally finish the story. Orton saying he will be more brutal in 2011 is great. I'd like to see Orton put his boot on the skull of Riley at the Rumble. Riley costs him the match and in an act of rage, Orton punts Riley. Randy is the face of Raw and the best performer which is why he faces Miz at the Rumble. Plus, he can put Miz over even more.
Raw showed focus, further developed stories and gave time to develop 3 quality in ring performances. The show was great and I didn't miss Cena one bit. I'm sure a lot of you did and hate the fact he was off the show. I didn't. I haven't liked Cena for years and felt tonight was a perfect example of how Raw could be a better show without him. Send your hate mail to jcall@bigbadsportsdaddy.com for that last comment. The WWE title was a major player tonight. A lot of times, Cena is the main focal point. Raw needs to focus more on the titles and less on one man. My only real complaint about Raw was they forgot Daniel Bryan. Other than that, I thought the show was excellent. The first year of 2011 starts out with a bang and I can't think of a better place to be than writing for you on BBSD. Make sure you check out Showstoppers and keep sending me your e-mails as another wrestling mailbag will return sometime in January. Happy New Year! Wooooo!
J Call
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