SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
If WWE’s annual calendar could be broken down similarly to that of Major League Baseball, Spring Training would last from early April until July. The regular season would kick off with Money In The Bank, running through the end of the year. The Royal Rumble would mark the start of the postseason, with playoffs leading us all the way to the World Series that is WrestleMania.
As such, we’re currently sitting somewhere between the All-Star break and the “dog days” of the season. Nothing indicates this point better than this past week’s Smackdown – a show that saw the company’s most dominant faction over the past three years limited to the first hour.
We had a ratings grab in hour two starring a moonlighting C-level celebrity who couldn’t keep a straight face while promoting his upcoming appearance following a recent UFC fight. The show culminated with a women’s title match that purported to be a showcase, but felt a bit flat. With all these factors, the Blue Brand’s portion of this week’s priority list is in a state of upheaval.
A more traditional edition of Raw, bookended by the promotion of the upcoming Damien Priest-Cody Rhodes match, kept the Red Brand humming along as we’re used to seeing. For the second time in three weeks, though, arguably the hardest working in-ring performer of 2023, Gunther, was given a breather. To the contrary, Rhea Ripley’s contributions are expanding with each episode, as she factored into more segments than not on this week’s show.
Division front-runners like these will soon have magic numbers coming into view while potential wild cards like Chad Gable, Bronson Reed, Indi Hartwell and the Street Profits will continue to string together victories and hope to make a run.
The playoffs will always bring out the casual viewers while the many stories of the regular season are witnessed by the diehards. Think of the Priority Top 10 as a weekly glimpse at the standings.
As always, the information taken into account to accumulate these lists include metrics such as quarter-hour ratings, who is featured in the open, closing, and top of the hour segments, names promoted in each shows preview, championships, and wins. I also factor in estimated monthly merchandise sales leaders, whose appearances begin with a higher floor than the others.
Priority Top 10
1. Judgement Day (5)
It’s just nice to see everyone getting along again. In the past few weeks, we’ve seen the volume turned down slightly on Dirty Dom’s crowd reaction and, as such, we’re getting to watch his heel persona further develop.
Finn continues to excel as a smarmy punk and Damien Priest appears to truly be coming into his own for the first time. It seems unlikely that he comes out on the winning end of a PLE match against Cody, though, and there’s virtually no chance JD McDonagh steals a win over Seth Rollins, so keeping the faction rolling will be a challenge.
In the meantime, they continue to dominate the most important parts of each Raw and are discussed by others throughout even when they’re not on screen.
2. L.A. Knight (4)
Knight’s front-runner status is buoyed by non-show factors such as his insane merchandise sales and placement in previews for each show, you know, the things that serve as a clear indication that he is currently a top priority. When you occupy that air, a highly-rated show opening segment discussing an upcoming PLE match with Roman Reigns is more than enough to put you over the top.
Where Knight’s prioritization lies following Crown Jewel will be the larger indication of the kind of playoff push we can expect him to receive.
3. Logan Paul (NR)
Appearances on both shows were enough for Logan Paul to push most other wrestlers down a notch on this week’s list. At one point, Santo Escobar seemed like the heir-apparent to the U.S. Championship. It’s possible, though, that the developing story with Carlito will serve as a diversion while the company looks to generate more clicks by putting some gold on TKO’s first true crossover star.
4. Rhea Ripley (8)
While the individuals higher on this list benefited from the perks of being company darlings, Rhea Ripley earned her standing the old-fashioned way, by dominating her show. When she’s not running the women’s division or leading her top faction, she’s mixing it up with both sides of the upcoming Heavyweight Title match.
With each appearance, it feels as though WWE has something huge in store for her, beyond what we’re currently witnessing. In a year when the main event of WrestleMania has felt out of reach for all but two or three names, and “fastest rising star” is a corporate tagline placed on someone else, there’s something especially exciting about a wrestler like Ripley carving out an unconventional, yet undeniable path.
4. Jey Uso (1)
He’s the current embodiment of the line that separates heels and faces. Whether or not a wrestler trusts him determines where they stand. The company has leaned into this narrative for months now, to the point where it could become a detriment to the next big name to turn face.
For example, if Damien Priest is exiled from Judgement Day, anyone on the babyface side who immediately embraces him will come off like a hypocrite for exhibiting a glaring double standard.
A second consecutive pinfall loss, this time in a way that had more to do with Cody than Jey, seems to indicate the beginning of a fade on Jey’s push. For now, he remains the highest ranking men’s singles wrestler on the roster, though, so the build towards Survivor Series will go a ways in determining where he stands in the long run.
6. Damage CTRL (NR)
On paper, Iyo Sky is in the midst of a main event-level push. She’s frequently featured in big televised matches and, as viewers, it’s been a treat. The issue, though, is that all of her matches appear to have more to do with either her challenger or Bayley’s motives or a mix of the two. This week, she felt like little more than Charlotte’s opponent and a backdrop for the return of Bianca Belair.
All the usage, though, serves as a bit of a hack to these priority rankings. Much like the matches, she’s there, but is she really any kind of priority?
If WWE would exhibit more confidence in Sky’s ability to stand alone as champion, we could have another huge star on our hands. For now, though, it feels like we’re on a long, winding road towards a feud with Bayley, and likely one that has nothing to do with the title.
6. Becky Lynch (NR)
Opposite of Iyo’s is-it-really-a-push type push is Becky Lynch. Like the absolute star she is, the Man willingly took a back seat in the women’s division to allow others to thrive. The usage spared us any kind of potential burn out on her character. In the meantime, she’s lied low and begun slowly building the prestige of the NXT Women’s Title.
The move has been divisive, but we’ve now reached the point in the story where showcase matches are taking place on each Raw. The opportunity presented to Indi Hartwell this week introduced the former Tuesday night standout to a much larger audience.
Becky’s backstage face off with Rhea Ripley reminded viewers that this star-making version of the former Champ isn’t the only one we can expect going forward. If told right, such a showdown could find its way into a main event slot at this years WrestleMania.
8. Cody Rhodes (3)
His run with the WWE Tag Team Titles felt like a creative way to get Cody through the remainder of the year while not running through every singles wrestler on the roster. With that quickly put to rest, we’re back to finding ways to fill his schedule until the Royal Rumble.
For now, that means more feuding with the Judgement Day and, for this week at least, an injury angle that limited his exposure to the beginning and end of a three-hour program.
9. John Cena (6)
The Hollywood writers strike has provided us with a way to enjoy John Cena that seemed unlikely to ever happen. For all the years we spent burned out on Super Cena, this version of him may truly help define his legacy when all is said and done.
He’s consistently placed in third on the Smackdown priority list and with only L.A. Knight and the Bloodline above him, it’s hard to argue that he’s not being used perfectly. He’s not being forced into a program with lower card talent that would ring hollow and he’s not outshining the biggest stars on the brand.
If his brief program with Austin Theory last year felt self-serving and tone deaf, this run has been anything but. He’s continually putting over his partners and opponents in believable fashion and allowing everyone he works with to shine. For me, it’s been one of the most pleasant surprises of the year.
10. Bloodline (2)
The biggest victims of an off-kilter episode of Smackdown found their way to the bottom of this week’s list. They are, however, still on the list. At a time when many folks are griping about the dominance of the never-ending Bloodline story (of which, I am certainly not one), toning things down for a week might not be the worst thing.
With Roman Reigns returning for a huge contract signing next week, expect the Bloodline to reemerge at the top of WWE’s priority list.
Smackdown Top 10
1. L.A. Knight (1, 4, 9)
2. Damage CTRL (8, 8, 2)
3. John Cena (3, 3, 3)
4. Bloodline (2, 1, 1)
5. LWO (7, 2, 6*)
6. Charlotte Flair (9, 10, 6*)
7. Logan Paul (NR)
8. Jey Uso (6, NR)
9. Kevin Owens (NR)
10. Bobby Lashley/Street Profits (NR, NR, 5)
Raw Top 10
1. Judgement Day (5, 1, 1)
2. Rhea Ripley (NR, 5, NR)
3. Becky Lynch (NR)
4. Cody Rhodes (3, 4, 2)
5. Indi Hartwell (NR)
6. Jey Uso (2, 6, 4)
7. New Day (NR)
8. Drew McIntyre (3, 10, 6)
9. Alpha Academy (NR)
10. Seth Rollins (1, 10, 5)/Logan Paul (NR)
Thanks so much for reading. Feel free to leave a comment or drop a line via email at jeffinbrooklyn@yahoo.com or on Twitter/X @jeffsjeffsyall.
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