5 WWE Superstars Vince McMahon gave up on during Paul Heyman's time as RAW Executive Director

#2 Apollo Crews

It might seem odd to include Apollo Crews in this list when he is the new United States Champion, but his long-term “burial” prior to his recent push reportedly stemmed from a decision that Vince McMahon made about the WWE RAW Superstar in 2016.

Back then, shortly after his main-roster debut, it was claimed that Crews had backstage heat after Vince McMahon felt that his new Superstar had botched some spots in a match on RAW with Chris Jericho. This, if true, might explain why Crews did not feature in many meaningful storylines between 2016 and 2020.

Dave Meltzer reacted to Crews’ recent United States Championship triumph by reflecting on the RAW Superstar’s first few months on the main roster after WrestleMania 32, including the time that Vince McMahon reportedly “gave up” on him.

“Yeah, everybody thought he was gonna be a big star until he started and then they thought he couldn’t do it because Vince gave up on him. Remember, they rushed him onto the main roster right away.” [H/T WrestlingNews.co]

Crews was predominantly a SmackDown roster member during Paul Heyman’s time as Executive Director, but he still made sporadic appearances on RAW before permanently joining the brand in April 2020.

Prior to his United States Championship push, Crews' only RAW matches in the last year ended in defeats against Mojo Rawley and Ricochet.

With Bruce Prichard now working alongside Vince McMahon on the red brand, it will be interesting to see how Crews is booked as United States Champion without Heyman leading the show's creative direction.