By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

Both WWE and TNA are coming out of the worst ratings week in a long, long time, including a 2.5 for Raw and a 0.85 for Impact Wrestling.

Both promotions are also lacking when it comes to a reliable lead babyface who is a proven draw. TNA may in the final days of Austin Aries, who appears to be in the midst of a turn from tweener-face to now tweener-heel since he's feuding with Jeff Hardy. Not that it's Aries's fault, but Impact ratings haven't gone up since he became the surprise World Champion. I'm expecting Jeff Hardy to beat Aries at Bound for Glory. In WWE, John Cena is out injured. Ryback has begun replacing Cena in upcoming house show line-ups.

While Hardy may prove to be a solid if not great lead babyface for TNA, it's worth noting that he headlined last week's show which drew an astonishingly low 0.85 rating. So he's not going to instantly ignite a ratings surge, even if they make him champion.

In WWE, Ryback was hardly on anyone's radar once Cena went down. Vince McMahon has chosen to elevate Ryback quickly. There's no guarantee he'll click with fans, either.

If WWE and TNA were able to trade wrestlers, or if some wrestlers with expiring contracts make moves on their own, there are a few roster moves that would benefit both promotions.

One trade I'd make is Jeff Hardy for Randy Orton. The novelty factor of Hardy in TNA has worn off, if it ever existed. He wasn't enough of a spark to keep TNA on Monday nights a few years ago, and he's not the type of talker who can fill TV time and carry main event storylines the way TNA likes to tell them. WWE could get a lot more out of Hardy than TNA is, as Hardy benefits from the WWE machinery and he has a history with fans. Hardy could be WWE's answer to Cena being absent, and eventually give WWE the top babyface star they need to consider turning Cena heel.

Meanwhile, Orton is in that two-strike purgatory in WWE where WWE is likely to be gun-shy in pushing him to the very top. He's better as a heel than a face, but WWE has him positioned as a babyface. Orton has been undisciplined, swearing on the air two nights in a row last month and giving a middle finger gesture on camera. He's spoken out against the WWE schedule and the lack of time off for wrestlers. In general, he's not the type of compliant "company man" McMahon tends to favor whenever possible. Orton, therefore, might continue to seem half-interested and half-hearted in terms of how he portrays his character.

In TNA, Orton could bring a top tier main event heel to TNA who would have the experience necessary to carry money-drawing heel promos. With his height, he'd be the ideal size as TNA's top babyfaces including A.J. Styles, Samoa Joe, and James Storm would have the sympathetic size disadvantage. I also think Orton vs. Storm, Orton vs. Joe, and Orton vs. Styles stand out as novel match-ups that could produce must-watch quality PPV matches. Mr. Anderson, Rob Van Dam, and Kurt Angle stand out as other worthy opponents for Orton. Bully Ray could be turned babyface at some point down the line, as could Matt Morgan (assuming he's returning as a heel imminently).

Orton could give TNA a level of leadership and credibility that Hardy doesn't given his more quirky personality. Orton's outlaw personality behind the scenes might be more at ease in TNA's more relaxed, less corporate environment. He also might appreciate the lighter schedule and he might rise to the occasion as the alpha male in a locker room, not playing second or third fiddle to other babyfaces more in favor with management.

Another move that would be good for WWE would be acquiring RVD. RVD is clearly uninspired in TNA. He's one of those veterans who doesn't seem invested in TNA nor does he seem to respect management or the company enough to really step up and help TNA in the ways it needs. He might have reasons for being disgruntled or he might just not have that leadership quality or motivation at this stage of his career (at age 41) to carry a promotion on his shoulders.

If RVD went to WWE, he could be a stop-gap babyface to create some fresh matches in WWE and be a house show main evener that might draw, especially when Cena is one the sidelines. If you were to orchestrate a trade (which, again, is pure fantasy as wrestlers cannot and should not be dealt like players in a league represented by a players' union protecting their rights), I would move The Miz to TNA in place of RVD. There are others who might be more valuable to TNA (I'd take Wade Barrett or Dolph Ziggler, for instance, over Miz right now), but Miz is a former WrestleMania main eventer who can generate mainstream publicity. He's also got a type-A personality that would be driven to make a different for TNA. TNA needs someone who can lead and generate energy, not wait to be led or just try to fit in. Miz has enough experience and the personality to be a good fit as a top level babyface or heel in TNA.

If those roster changes took place right now, both promotions would be better off. I also think the wrestlers involved would be happier in certain ways (although Miz would be least likely to embrace the move, I think, and Orton only would embrace it if TNA and Spike TV really stepped up and paid him competitively). I think WWE thinks they can have it all, and they might be right. With Hardy's deal coming up in January and RVD's in March, I think there's a better than 50/50 shot that both are in WWE by WrestleMania season next year. It's less likely TNA ends up with Miz and Orton, or anything close, through free agency.

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