5 Reasons why WWE is planning a Roman Reigns vs Daniel Bryan feud

While WWE focuses on Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins and Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton ahead of SummerSlam, there is uncertainty surrounding Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan’s storylines heading into the pay-per-view on August 11.

Reigns, who has been involved in a rivalry with Samoa Joe in recent weeks, survived an attempted attack from an unknown assailant in the final minute of SmackDown Live on July 30, and he is currently without a match at SummerSlam.

Meanwhile, Bryan has teased since Extreme Rules that he has a “career-altering” announcement to make, but every time he appears to be close to making the announcement, he decides not to say anything and walk away.

Short-term, it remains unclear what plans WWE has for the two Superstars at SummerSlam. Long-term, however, it would appear that the company is setting up a rivalry between the two men in September.

According to adverts, Reigns vs. Bryan will take place at the Raw and SmackDown Live shows at MSG on September 9-10, while they are also due to go head-to-head at a live event in Prescott Valley, Arizona on September 28.

In this article, let’s take a look at five possible reasons why WWE could be planning another feud between the former World Champions.

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#5 Roman Reigns wanted the match at WrestleMania 35

Speaking in a 2018 interview with the Spanish section of WWE’s website, Roman Reigns revealed that his first-choice opponent for WrestleMania 35 was Daniel Bryan.

“The Leader of the Yes Movement”, as he was known at the time, had only recently been cleared to return after a three-year absence, and Reigns mentioned that he would even prefer to face Bryan instead of Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose.

“It would be a great fight for next year at WrestleMania: Daniel Bryan vs. Roman Reigns. But if it cannot be, then I’d like to face the rest of The Shield, Seth and Dean again, I think it would be great too.”

As it turned out, “The Big Dog” faced Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania following his return from battling leukemia, while Bryan put his WWE Championship on the line against Kofi Kingston.

#4 Their previous match was a classic

Following the 2015 Royal Rumble, there was more pressure than ever before for Roman Reigns to prove that he was a world-class in-ring performer.

The former Shield member had been booed out of the building by fans in Philadelphia, despite receiving help from all-time great The Rock, and the WWE Universe had major doubts about whether he was worthy of headlining WrestleMania 31 against Brock Lesnar.

At the next pay-per-view, Fastlane, “The Big Dog” had the opportunity to prove his naysayers wrong when he battled Daniel Bryan in the main event, with Reigns’ #1 contender’s spot for the WWE Championship on the line.

Reigns won the match, producing one of his best performances to date, and it was clear right from the start that the two men had undeniable in-ring chemistry.

Four-and-a-half years later, both Superstars are at very different stages of their careers, but they would no doubt tear the house down again if they are given the chance.

#3 Positive change from their usual storylines

Once a WWE Superstar reaches a certain level of stardom, they often find themselves in a familiar storyline pattern where their main purpose is to help elevate other talents.

Becky Lynch, for example, reached the highest of highs at WrestleMania 35 when she defeated Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair to become Raw and SmackDown Women's Champion, so what happened next? She helped elevate Lacey Evans.

Outside of his statement-making wins over Triple H and The Undertaker, Roman Reigns’ non-WrestleMania rivalries usually involve him elevating other Superstars (Braun Strowman, Baron Corbin, Drew McIntyre etc), and the same goes for Daniel Bryan (Big Cass, Kofi Kingston, Heavy Machinery etc).

It is very rare that two top Superstars go head-to-head and there is no clear indication on who WWE’s decision-makers are trying to ‘push’ in the storyline, and that is exactly what fans would get with Reigns vs. Bryan.

#2 SmackDown’s storylines have lacked star power

Since it was announced that Paul Heyman would oversee the creative direction of Raw and Eric Bischoff would hold the same position on SmackDown Live, there has been a clear change in storyline development on Monday nights.

On Tuesday nights, however, Bischoff has only recently started his new role, meaning that SmackDown Live has continued to follow a similar format ever since WrestleMania 35, with Kofi Kingston winning the majority of his matches with Trouble In Paradise and Shane McMahon taking up television time by giving orders to his villainous allies.

At times, the show has almost come across like a glorified live event due to the biggest news stories emerging from Raw every week.

Moving forward, the blue brand desperately needs some major storylines to develop on a week-to-week basis, and a rivalry between megastars like Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan would go a long way to helping improve the show’s quality.

#1 Eric Bischoff wants Daniel Bryan in main events

As reported by Sportskeeda’s Tom Colohue, new SmackDown Live Executive Director Eric Bischoff is keen to use Daniel Bryan in the main-event scene on SmackDown Live.

Since losing the WWE Championship to Kofi Kingston at WrestleMania 35, Bryan has been involved in the SmackDown Tag Team Championship picture with Rowan. However, after they lost the titles to The New Day at Extreme Rules, “The Planet’s Champion” made it clear that he no longer wants to be part of the tag division.

Colohue recently wrote that Bischoff and FOX are big fans of Bryan’s heel gimmick and he is certain to move up the card once the former WCW executive settles into his role and begins to have more of a say in SmackDown Live’s storylines.

Post-SummerSlam, there would be no better babyface opponent for the villainous Bryan to take on than Roman Reigns.