5 Times Roman Reigns was universally cheered by the fans

#4 Roman Reigns and Batista are the final two of the 2014 Royal Rumble Match

A year before Roman Reigns was booed out of the building for winning the Royal Rumble Match, everybody wanted him to win. It looked like Batista would dominate his way towards victory at the Rumble in 2014, especially since Daniel Bryan was not in the match. But a spirited performance from Reigns gave the fans some hope.

Still a member of The Shield at this point, The Big Dog put on one of the greatest performances in Royal Rumble history. He eliminated 12 Superstars and reached the final two, facing off against Batista. The entire Pittsburgh crowd was behind Roman Reigns and desperately wanted him to win, even if it was only so that The Animal would lose.

Reigns looked like an absolute star, setting the table for future starring roles at the Royal Rumble. Every fan was on their feet when the Big Dog speared Batista and gained the upper hand. However, the six-time WWE World Champion ended up winning and was heavily booed in the process.

This was one of the very first glimpses of Roman Reigns at the top of the card. An encouraging sign for sure, but the next few years were a lot more turbulent than WWE would have expected at the time.