5 Wrestlers once signed to NXT who have flourished elsewhere

#3: Eli Drake

Drake would be perfect for NXT or even Raw or Smackdown.

Drake wrestled for NXT from 2013-2014 under the name Slate Randall. He had previously competed on and won the reality show the Hero which was executive produced by the Rock.

He eventually left in 2014, citing issues with head trainer DeMott. When he resurfaced again, he was a part of the Rising faction alongside Drew Galloway (McIntyre) and Mika (Camacho/Tanga Loa).

He initially started as a face but when he turned heel, his career took off. He was one of the main bright spots when Impact and Dixie Carter were going through a messy divorce.

Week in and week out, Drake was always a highlight of any episode of Impact he was on. Whether in the ring or on his talk show, The Fact of Life, he always delivered.

He really shined when he would run down any number of opponents as he would call them 'Dummies'. It was and still is, always entertaining.

He eventually won the GFW/Impact World Championship at the end of a 20-man Gauntlet Match to name a new Heavyweight Champion. Alberto El Patron was stripped due to alleged domestic issues with then-girlfriend Paige. I think they made the right choice.

Drake and Eddie Edwards started the gauntlet and finished it, providing fans with two impressive performances from guys who would become building blocks for the new Impact. Although he lost the title to a debuting Austin Aries, Drake has always remained one of the top performers in the company.

He's still signed to Impact and appears to be headed to a feud with hardcore legend Tommy Dreamer. Drake is saying he's the last of a dying breed of guys who look and wrestle like superstars whereas Dreamer represents any 'slob' off the street who thinks they can make it as a hardcore wrestler.

It should be an interesting feud.