5 Indie darlings who changed WWE for the better

On December 31st, we not only said goodbye to the year 2019, but also to the 2010s as a decade. The 2010s were interesting for WWE. The decade saw the launch of the WWE Network and the Performance Center, two of the company's most ambitious endeavors. We also saw a complete restructuring of the company's developmental system with the introduction of NXT. WWE also branched outside its home base, USA, by launching NXT UK and a Performance Center in the UK.

The 2010s also saw the rise of Women's Wrestling in the company. Women went from having a 4-minute match at WrestleMania 26 at the start of the decade to main-eventing The Showcase of Immortals at WrestleMania 35 in 2019.

Perhaps, the biggest change within the company in the decade saw a major shift in their philosophy of what constitutes a star. For the longest time, Vince McMahon & Co. stressed having homegrown talents as it's top stars. Superstars like Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton and Batista, whom the company build from ground up, were marquee names on WWE programming the decade prior.

But, the 2010s saw the company bringing in talent who didn't fit the mold of a prototypical WWE Superstar. These were names who were renowned in the wrestling world for their in-ring acumen and had made a name for themselves prior to their arrival in the company. The landscape of WWE would have been entirely different had the company stuck to its guns.

Here are five indie darlings who changed WWE for better:

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#5. Kevin Owens

Owens is a heavy crowd-favorite to win the 2019 Men's Royal Rumble match

With a career spanning almost two decades, Kevin Owens was one of the most renowned names during his time in the independent circuit. As Kevin Steen, Owens performed for every major independent company and held numerous titles in all of these promotions. Owens was the cornerstone of ROH and PWG, two of the most-renowned independent promotions in the states. Owens is a record third-time holder of the PWG World Championship and became the first Canadian to capture the ROH World Championship after he defeated Davey Richards for the title at Border Wars 2012.

Owens signed with WWE in 2014 and would immediately become one of the top stars on NXT, capturing the NXT Championship a mere two months after debuting on the Black and Gold Brand. He would debut on RAW while holding NXT gold and confront John Cena, laying him out with a Pop-Up Powerbomb. Owens would shock the world by defeating Cena in his debut match on the main roster at Elimination Chamber 2015.

Owens carried the momentum into 2016 by becoming the second man to hold the Universal Championship and held it for the next seven months. After almost two years of near-complete irrelevance, the Quebec-native seems to have finally found his groove as the top babyface on RAW.

Owens is one of the most charismatic Superstars on the roster today. Despite not having the build of a prototypical WWE Superstar, he more than makes up for it with his impeccable mic skills and performances inside the squared circle.

#4. AJ Styles

Styles has been at the top for the majority of his run in WWE

If someone told us in 2010 that not only would AJ Styles sign with WWE, but become a major player in the company, we would have probably laughed it off. A TNA/IMPACT Original, Styles started out in the business with WCW when the company was at its deathbed. In 2002, he would sign with TNA and quickly become one of its cornerstones. He had excellent matches against the likes of Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Sting, Jeff Hardy, and Jeff Jarett during his decade-plus run in the company.

Despite IMPACT's financial woes and their mistreatment of homegrown talents, the Georgia-native remained loyal to the company for the longest time. But, in 2014, he finally had enough. After his contract expired, Styles decided against re-signing with the company, as his new deal included a severe pay-cut.

Following his exit from IMPACT, Styles would head to the Land of Rising Sun. As the leader of Bullet Club, 'The Phenomenal One' became the top gaijin star in New Japan and held the IWGP Heavyweight Championship on two occasions.

Styles made his WWE debut at the 2016 Royal Rumble to a raucous response from the crowd and would go on to win the WWE Championship a mere eight months after debuting for the company.

Styles has become a staple of WWE and firmly established himself as a top star in the company. His ability to deliver knockout performances inside the squared circle hasn't diminished as 'The Phenomenal One' has consistently put out some of the best WWE matches in recent memory.

#3. Seth Rollins

Rollins has become an established megastar in WWE

He might be the most polarizing figure in the business, but at the start of the decade, Seth Rollins was one of the beloved faces on the independent circuit. The very people who despise him now once sang praises of how great the former Shield member was. Rollins got his first big break in the business as part of Wrestling Society X (WSX), a short-lived wrestling show that aired on MTV.

As Tyler Black, Rollins made his ROH debut in 2007 alongside Jimmy Jacobs and Necro Butcher as part of The Age of The Fall. He and Jacobs would win the ROH World Tag Team Championship on two separate occasions. Black rose to singles stardom when he defeated Austin Aries to win the ROH World Championship at ROH'S eight anniversary show in February 2010. He would hold on to the title for 210 days before dropping it to Roderick Strong in his final ROH match at Glory By Honor IX.

Rollins would sign with WWE in August 2010 and would become the creme de la creme of the company's developmental system. He would win the FCW Florida Heavyweight Championship and become the inaugural NXT Champion. He debuted on the main roster as part of The Shield alongside Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns at Survivor Series 2012 and the rest, as they say, is history.

Seth Rollins has tasted major success during his time on the main roster winning the WWE and Universal Championship on numerous occasions. He has beaten the who's who of the company and has become one of WWE's top stars.

#2. Daniel Bryan

Bryan as WWE Champion

One of the most beloved Superstars of all time, Daniel Bryan has been a central figure on WWE programming throughout the decade. One of the founding fathers of Ring of Honor, Bryan was one of the key figures in ROH'S rise to prominence in the wrestling world. His matches against the likes of Nigel McGuiness, KENTA, Homicide, Austin Aries and Takeshi Morishima helped usher in a new era of wrestling.

Being a top guy in WWE was a distant dream when he first arrived in 2009. Bryan didn't have the physique of a prototypical WWE Superstar, nor did he had the ability to enchant the crowd with his promos. What Bryan possessed in abundance was his ability to put on great matches against every opponent that was thrown at him.

His feud against CM Punk for the WWE Championship during the summer of 2012 was one of the most important WWE feuds in the last decade. The magic that Bryan and Punk created together helped paved the way for wrestlers with similar career trajectories to become major players in WWE.

Bryan's road to glory in the main event of WrestleMania is one of the best stories the company has ever told. Bryan was forced to retire from in-ring action in 2016 due to a series of concussions. The Washington-native would make it his life mission to get back inside the squared circle by visiting some of the world's best neurologists and undergoing Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Treatment (HBOT). Bryan was finally cleared by WWE's medical team in March 2019.

The former WWE Champion's passion for the business is infectious. Bryan continues to be a major player in WWE and is currently embroiled in a feud against 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt with the two set to face off against one another for the Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble.

# 1. CM Punk

Punk is the longest reigning WWE Champion in the modern era

The imprint that CM Punk left on the psyche of wrestling fans is something that can't be expressed in mere words. Punk was perhaps the first of his kind, a star before he arrived in WWE, who went to scale great heights in Vince McMahon's company. But, Punk's road to super stardom wasn't an easy one. From constantly butting people in power to getting dissed by several members of the locker room for having a bad attitude, Punk's chances of getting to where he eventually ended up were slim to none when he first signed with the company in 2005.

Punk wouldn't have made it past developmental if it weren't Paul Heyman, who mentored him during the initial stages of his WWE career and vouched for the Chicago-native with the powers that be. The early part of Punk's run with the company saw him become an afterthought on RAW despite holding the World Heavyweight Championship.

Punk's ability to constantly reinvent himself and elevate his opponents endeared him to fans. And then, the pipebomb happened. On June 26, 2011, Punk went on a verbal tirade against John Cena and the WWE in a promo that has become part of wrestling folklore. Punk's intensity combined with the blurring of lines during the promo has made it one of the best wrestling promos in history.

Punk's win over John Cena at Money In The Bank 2011 is widely regarded by many as the best WWE match of the past decade. His 434-day reign as WWE Champion solidified his status as one of the greatest WWE Superstars of the modern era.

Despite abruptly leaving the company in 2014 and not returning to the squared circle since his appearance in the 2014 Royal Rumble, Punk continues to be one of the most revered figures in the wrestling world.