By Tony Donofrio, PWTorch specialist

WWE

-Who could have predicted that The Shield would be this good just roughly six months into their WWE rookie years? Well, I suppose experts like Sean Radican and anyone else that followed Seth Rollins (Tyler Black) and Dean Ambrose (Jon Moxley) during their indy careers! I hesitate to call myself an expert, but I'm not lying when I say that I knew this could happen also. The reason that I say "could" instead of "would" is because no one really knew back in December if the powers that be in WWE would really pull the trigger and let these three young stars really blossom the way that they could. Kudos to WWE, they have!

I believe Shield have been booked perfectly and they are one of the few things that I look forward to seeing on weekly WWE programming. However, now that all three Shield members have titles, I believe they should try to collect more titles and, in no situation other than serious injury, should NOT lose any of their titles until at least next year's WrestleMania. Rollins, Ambrose, and Roman Reigns could be the guys that elevate the U.S. and Tag Titles to a level that they haven't been in nearly a decade.

There are situations where titles can make the wrestler and wrestlers can make the title. When it pertains to The Shield, I truly believe the latter is possible in this case and it could be a great ride watching the mid-card titles return to prominence.

-I thought Ryback had his best live promo to date on Raw. That's not saying much, but I actually bought into what he was saying (well, except for saying that he was literally gonna kill John Cena). The tough part of this is that this still feels all to familiar and I don't think we'll see Ryback wearing the WWE Title anytime this late spring or early summer. Here's hoping that I'm wrong, but we've all seen this fish before.

Super Cena is lurking in the wings and will probably win the Ambulance Match at Payback in June. The Ryback heel turn hasn't quite bombed like I thought it would, but was definitely taken off of life support with the Extreme Rules match and Monday's promo. However, I still feel like Ryback needs to be WWE champion by mid-summer for this heel turn to be a true success. If not, then he's just another guy that John Cena got to run through on the growing list of guys that can almost never be legit contenders to him again.

-I believe the collective disappointment by many WWE fans that the newest "Paul Heyman Guy" is Joe Hennig a/k/a Curtis Axel is very short-sighted. If anyone can help elevate a young star to bigger and better things, it's Paul Heyman. Some wanted to see The Shield be the new client. Others wanted it to be Ryback. Ryback wouldn't have been a bad choice, but it apparently wasn't in the cards. The Shield doesn't need Heyman. That doesn't mean that those two wouldn't fit perfectly like a hand into a glove, but The Shield has gotten over on their own and if WWE were to pull the trigger on a Shield/Heyman alliance, it would have happened in February when WWE had the chance.

Hennig is one of the guys that many have talked about for years and this will be his "make or break" opportunity. If he can't get over with Heyman as his mouthpiece then it's just not gonna happen. I like the pairing and I can't wait to see where Heyman can take Hennig. Monday's start to this angle wasn't earth-shattering, like Brock Lesnar's impact was 12 years ago, but I suggest fans be patient and give this alliance a chance.

-WWE has reached out to the NFLPA in hopes of filtering former players into its developmental system. This is a brilliant idea and I hope it comes to pass. That doesn't mean that every guy that eventually doesn't make it in the NFL will be the next big star/WWE champion. However, you could still find a few diamonds in the rough that definitely makes it worth some sort of deal being struck.

TNA Impact

-Over the past week, the Austin Aries-Christy Hemme situation cooled down significantly. However, we still don't know many details about the specific repercussions for Aries. Last Thursday's show was taped, so will there be an on-air apology from Aries this week? I hope so. I've always been a supporter of Aries, and I love his work on promos and in the ring. However, there's a fine line that Aries crossed two weeks ago that he shouldn't have crossed, especially if Hemme was not expecting it and it was a true shoot moment (which it has been confirmed that this was not a work). I think Aries will do the right thing. I guess we'll see for sure on Thursday night.

-Last week, TNA president Dixie Carter stated that she'd like to see TNA and WWE wrestlers appear on the same show and work together. Pause for laughter. From her perspective, I can understand why she'd want this. Obviously it would elevate TNA, which is a distant number 2, and put it on a similar level to WWE. However, Vince McMahon, Triple H, and Stephanie McMahon-Levesque can still be heard laughing from their offices in Stamford, Conn.

WWE has nothing to gain by ever letting its stars rub elbows, let alone take bumps, from any star who is currently under contract to TNA. That doesn't mean that past WWE stars on the TNA roster and future stars that could from TNA aren't good workers and don't deserve that chance to work with the number 1 company. But, for Carter to make that a public statement had to be a grasp at straws just to keep her name in the news.

Other Wrestling News

-WWE Hall of Famer Tammy Sytch was released from prison this past week. Here's hoping she really can pull her life together. It seems like every few years we see the same thing from Sytch in some way, shape, or form. It seemed like she really had things together the last time we saw her on WWE TV. However, that wasn't the case. She's also reportedly writing an autobiography.

Aside from Chyna (I know she wrote a book in 2001, but that was a lifetime ago!) and Sable, this might be one of the few former WWE Divas who could write a book that I'd truly be interested in reading considering when Sytch was a full-time member of the WWF/E roster. If/when this book comes to fruition, consider me on-board.

Non-Wrestling News

-Is there any way that the Miami Heat don't repeat this year to win the NBA Title? (No offense to Indiana Pacers fans!) I'm not a huge NBA fan, but I just can't see any team left in the East or West giving them a legit challenge now that the Oklahoma City Thunder have bowed out in the West.

I suppose the Spurs have a chance considering they have a good coach in Gregg Popovich. However, it still feels like way too little compared to the conglomerate that has become the Miami Heat. Why don't we just give them the trophy and call it a day?

Tony Donofrio is a Specialist for the Torch covering a variety of topics and promotions. You can reach Tony at TonyDonofrio@icloud.com or follow him on Twitter @TonyDonofrio .

[Graphic (c) WWE.com]

We suggest these recent related articles...

10/5 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Natalya vs. Paige, Owens vs. Cara, Stephanie McMahon, Sasha Banks, Xavier Woods

COLLECTIBLES COLUMN: The History of Foam Hands in Pro Wrestling

9/28 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Kane's Split Personality, Divas Revolution, Heyman & Big Show, Reigns vs. Wyatt