WWE Reportedly Planning Big Push For Two SmackDown Stars

WWE SmackDown’s men’s division may have lost in a clean sweep at Survivor Series, but there are big things on the horizon for two solo stars on the blue brand who didn’t even appear at the event.

According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Wrestling Inc), leaving Lars Sullivan and The New Day’s Big E off the Survivor Series card was actually a purposeful decision designed to “protect both stars” rather than simply an instance of bad booking: “With Big E ‘being groomed for a future championship match’ and Sullivan set to be booked as ‘SmackDown’s version of Braun Strowman,’ WWE wanted to protect both stars rather than having them participate in a battle royal that wasn’t even on the main card.”

After originally being penciled in for a spot on Team SmackDown, which lost in decisive fashion to Team Raw, Big E was ultimately left off the blue brand’s squad in favor of Otis. Of course, that—in hindsight—turned out to be the right decision, given the way Team SmackDown was booked at Survivor Series. Big E is reportedly in line for a massive push on Friday nights, so there were naturally some questions about his status when he didn’t even have a match at Survivor Series, but having no match at all is certainly better than having a forgettable appearance in a 5-on-5 match that means nothing or a battle royal that was relegated to the pre-show.

SmackDown viewership has improved considerably in recent weeks in comparison to where it was just a few short months ago, and that can be attributed to the blue brand’s noticeable uptick in the quality of its storytelling. Big E hasn’t really benefited from WWE’s improved storyline quality, however, as all he’s done during that span is have a mediocre feud with Sheamus and then largely been left out of the storyline loop. For all its high points, SmackDown is quickly figuring out that it is really thin in the star power department following last month’s draft, which left Big E positioned as one of the blue brand’s top solo babyfaces despite him having virtually no experience in that role.

What Big E does have going for him is a long history of ranking among WWE’s most popular stars and its top merchandise sellers, which could bode well for his chances of rising up the card on SmackDown as WWE’s new No. 1 brand doesn’t have a lot of stars who are both fresh faces in the singles scene and ready to be elevated to the next level. Big E remains one of the most obvious frontrunners to potentially challenge Roman Reigns for SmackDown’s Universal title on the grand stage of WrestleMania 37, but a lot of work has to be done in order to adequately prepare Big E for that role.

The same is true of Sullivan on the heel side. “The Freak” is the prototypical WWE star that Vince McMahon loves, but his checkered past—one that is filled with controversy after controversy, it seems—hasn’t exactly endeared him to WWE’s fan base. Fans have continuously wondered why WWE wants to elevate Sullivan up the card given his injury history, his problems outside of the ring and his shortcomings inside it, and yet, Sullivan has been described as the “one guy” WWE is truly planning on pushing in the immediate future.

Although Sullivan doesn’t have a ton of fans backstage, WWE remains committed to pushing him as SmackDown’s equivalent to Raw’s Braun Strowman, which explains why “The Monster Among Men” was recently moved to the red brand. Serious questions remain, though, about exactly how successful Sullivan will be given all of his issues both in and out of the squared circle, where he hasn’t demonstrated a boatload of charisma or elite in-ring skills.

With SmackDown getting the short end of the star power stick in the recent draft, however, Sullivan has plenty of room for advancement on the blue brand, especially with the popular Aleister Black reportedly getting lost in the shuffle—an unfortunate fate that has befallen numerous former NXT standouts in recent years but one that opens up more space for other stars to excel.

While McMahon is notorious for changing his mind in an instant, Sullivan and Big E are the most obvious candidates to climb the ladder on SmackDown in the near future. For better or for worse.