On April 25th, WWE is holding its yearly draft, and after Wrestlemania season, it’s definitely time to shake things up. Several guys on the RAW and Smackdown rosters could really use a change of scenery.
Daniel Bryan – the former United States Champion is one of the best wrestlers under WWE contract, and RAW isn’t the right show for that. With Edge having to retire, Smackdown needs another face to rise to the top. Do I think he could fill the role of the top face on Smackdown? Probably, if they’re willing to go in a Bret Hart type direction. Will they? Not likely, but he could easily reignite the Intercontinental Championship divisionand take a stab at the main event from time to time.
John Morrison – despite having the potential to utilize the chemistry discovered years ago when he teamed with The Miz, it doesn’t seem likely that WWE want to pair these two up for a feud anytime soon. If they’re still not sure about John Morrison being worthy of a World Championship reign, they may as well put him on Smackdown and give that a try.
Zack Ryder – if there was a ratio of popularity to the amount of time a person gets on television for the show they’re on a roster for (Superstars / NXT don’t count), Zack Ryder would be atop the list. Long Island Iced Z almost never gets the opportunity to show up on RAW despite his charisma and in-ring ability, and unless WWE decides to make a huge mistake and fire him, Smackdown would be the best location for him.
Heath Slater – it seems obvious the WWE is wanting to put the splits to The Corre, or at least shake it up a little bit. Sending Wade Barrett to RAW would be a bad move, since he already ended things with John Cena and there’s no need to match him up against The Miz or CM Punk. Smackdown is the best place for him to grow as a superstar, so let’s keep him there. Zeke Jackson hasn’t shown enough mic skills yet to be considered a viable option to move to RAW, though I see that as a distinct possibility. The One Man Rock Band Slater does have mic skills, and while his in-ring ability (and look) don’t add up to him being a main eventer, there’s no reason he couldn’t tool around the mid-card.
Kofi Kingston – I could see him getting a main event push on Smackdown, but I think WWE is going to move him over to RAW and see how the fans react to a re-push into the main event, where he started to rise a year or two ago during his great feud with Randy Orton. He’s starting to get a bit stale on Smackdown, so it’s time for a change.
Sin Cara – Does anyone even know what show he’s on? We’ve seen him on both RAW and Smackdown, so it’s time to decide, and why not just get the announcement during the draft? With Rey Mysterio staying on Smackdown, I don’t see any reason why Sin Cara would be anywhere other than RAW.
Randy Orton – it seems doubtful that Orton will ever get the reigns on RAW, where John Cena rules the roost. It’s hard for me to imagine Cena going to Smackdown despite several friends of mine thinking that would be the best option for WWE right now. Either RKO or Cena will be on Smackdown, and I’ll be shocked if it’s Cena.
Layla – if you don’t realize that LayCool is splitting up, then you’re not watching Smackdown. I don’t forsee McCool and Layla having a series of matches to decide which one of them is better. With McCool being married to Undertaker in real life, I don’t see her leaving Smackdown anytime soon because The Dead Man will be on Smackdown until he’s inducted into the Hall Of Fame.
Ted DiBiase – he’s on RAW, right? Sometimes it’s hard to remember because he’s barely ever used and when he is, the chances are good that he’s just losing a match to Daniel Bryan. Move him to Smackdown, give him the chance to thrive.
Tyson Kidd – I watch RAW and Smackdown each week, following everything that happens, and I had to consult WWE.com to figure out what show he was on. Not only is he on a show that doesn’t seem to be interested in booking him, but the way Smackdown is shaping up with the other switches I envision, Tyson Kidd will have plenty of very talented competitors to perform with.
Drew McIntyre -they dubbed him the Chosen One, and Smackdown is not the place where the top guys sit. He’s got the skils to be a face or a heel, and I believe WWE is going to let him test his skills on their biggest show.
Big Show – If Randy Orton is coming to Smackdown, RAW needs another big face to play second fiddle to John Cena, and that’s going to be Santino… in a perfect world. In this world, it’s going to be Big Show, as WWE seems to enjoy splitting up tag champs to put them on opposite shows, and they also seem to like to include Big Show as someone who gets switched from one show to another, as it has happened for him at least twice or thrice that I can remember.
Superstars Unlikely to Switch Shows
Triple H and The Undertaker – not that I expect either of those guys to actually appear on a regular basis on RAW and Smackdown respectively in the next eight months, but when they do show up, they’re going to remain on the shows they’ve been a part of for the past few years.
The Miz – though I see plenty of potential for him to work with the various guys who I envision being on Smackdown as of Tuesday, WWE will let him continue to grow as one of the top superstars on RAW.
Alberto Del Rio – his larger than life persona would fit in very well on RAW, but things are setting up too nicely on Smackdown for him to make a change now. On RAW, it might be tough for him to get a World Title reign and assert himself as the Alpha Male, but that’s exactly what’s going to happen for him on Smackdown over the course of the next year.
Dolph Ziggler – he just got to RAW, and there’s no need to send him back to Smackdown anytime soon. His future is on RAW for 2011, if not beyond. Sending he and Vickie Guerrero back to Smackdown seems like a step in the wrong direction.
Rey Mysterio – Smackdown is the home of Rey Mysterio and The Undertaker, and that’s never going to change.
