The draft is just days away and due to the endless permutations and combinations that are possible, everyone is buzzing about the same. WWE, to their credit, has kept the buzz alive with segments promoting the drafts.
The idea, as always, will be to pack both the brands with enough talent to keep the momentum going and come up with a product which the fans could enjoy.
Ahead of the drafts, we are going to have a mock draft, where we will take a look at the best picks for both the brands. This is the first piece in the Two-part mock draft series and in this list, we take a look at the best picks for Monday Night Raw.
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Women’s Division
The Women’s division does not have enough depth to survive a brand split. Though WWE did spark off full-fledged ‘revolution’, it ended up getting nowhere and currently, WWE should focus on building up properly rather than coming up with two different divisions for the women performers.
One main reason why the entire Women’s division should be on Raw is because of the length of the show.
The length of the shows is something that will not change after the brand split. This means that WWE will have to fill three hours of programming on Monday Nights. Thus, it opens up the possibility of multiple feuds from the Women’s division and thereby signifies progress.
Enzo and Cass
Enzo and Cass is a hot act. They are over as hell among the WWE fans and splitting them for the brand split would be the last thing WWE would want to do.
Enzo and Cass, with the momentum they have now, will win the Tag Team championships in no time and with the New Day probably in their twilight, Enzo and Cass could rise as the new top babyface tag team on the roster.
WWE could call up Carmella and reunite her with these two to make it a full-blown stable. Enzo and Cass could also flirt with the main event scene just like they are doing now by getting involved in the John Cena vs. AJ Styles feud.
Rusev and The Miz
On paper, Rusev and The Miz might be mid card champions that are underrated. But the fact that both Rusev and Miz generate huge amount of heat makes it easy for WWE to push them into the main event scene after the brand split.
Rusev along with Lana and Miz along with Maryse, have been doing exceptionally well in the mid card. With main event slots opening up after the brand split, either of them or both of them could fill in and even go on to become a champion that the fans would hate completely.
You are irritated even by the thought of Miz being in the main event right? Exactly the point.
New Day
Just like Enzo and Cass, the New Day needs to stay put to keep the tag team division ticking. They are the reigning tag team champions and a jump to SmackDown is not going to benefit New Day. As WWE has three hours of programming to fill and New Day is entertaining to the core, multiple segments from New Day are a possible path.
As WWE has three hours of programming to fill and New Day is entertaining to the core, multiple segments from New Day is a possible out.
New Day staying on Raw rather than going to SmackDown also comes with other benefits such as new teams getting the limelight on SmackDown. If WWE is ending the stable, Big E, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods could be midcard stars for the brand as well.
Finn Balor
The debut of Finn Balor is still one of the most awaited moments in the wrestling community.
WWE and Finn have been teasing the same for a long time now and when it finally comes, expect the Internet to be broken. As you will understand going forward in this series, WWE does have problems with creating baby faces.
In the current roster, there aren’t many wrestlers that the fans would rally around without a second thought.
This set up a good platform for Finn Balor. If he debuts, he will be met with cheers and this makes it easy for WWE to build him up as a top baby face in the Raw brand.
Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho, even after all these years, is probably ‘the’ most entertaining act on the WWE roster. Jericho has been involved in some memorable feuds during his current spell. But he has been restricted to the midcard or upper midcard, and this is something that could change after the brand split.
Jericho could get his run as a main event star on Raw.
He is a perfect as a heel and can perform both as a heel champion and a challenger.
Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins is synonymous with versatility. He is a superstar that could excel both as a heel performer and as a baby face.
WWE did have the chance of bringing him back as a full-fledged baby face after his injury but decided to keep him heel instead. Rollins, despite the love that he getting from the fans, has managed to stick out as one of the most hated heels.
This is because of the sheer brilliance that he has. And having a performer like him who could be a main event level good guy and bad guy will help Monday Night Raw in the longer run.
Randy Orton
Randy Orton is all set to make his return after a long injury layoff. Orton has already secured a date with Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam but before that, WWE will have to build up Orton as a credible challenger for the Beast.
Right now, WWE will have to build the momentum of Orton from scratch. The experience of Orton will come handy for the procedure and Orton is likely to be booked as a babyface.
Orton might not be in his prime, but he can be a main event level baby face champion if provided with proper feuds. The battle against Brock Lesnar is going to give him some mileage and WWE can make use of it to project him as a major player on the Raw Roster.
Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns is still probably the guy who will take WWE forward. He has all the factors that WWE look for in a franchise player and one wellness policy violation might not be enough to nip his push in the bud.
When Reigns returns, he will be given a solid push by WWE and as he will be built up as the next face of the promotion, it makes sense to keep him on the flagship show.
A change of scenario is not what Reigns wants just days after coming off the suspension time period. He could be a champion on Raw and the natural heat that he generates will make it easy to make him the best heel champion on the roster.
Sami Zayn
A pure babyface is something that is hard to find these days. No matter how much WWE pushes one person, he ends up being polarizing at one point or the other. Zayn, on the other hand, has a different story.
He is impossible to hate and easy to love thanks to the underdog characteristics that he projects.
Zayn has been booked as an underdog ever since he made it to the main roster and this fact could be put to use if WWE pushes Zayn as the main event level baby face on Raw just like they did with Daniel Bryan.
There are a lot of buts and ifs but it is a practical idea on paper.
