The biggest winners and losers of last night's SmackDown (September 24, 2019)

Last night's SmackDown was the final one on the USA Network (for now), as the blue brand will now move to FOX and air on Friday nights starting from next week. Unfortunately, this show wasn't a good way to end that era and hype up the next one. Sure, there were some important and good moments, but a lot of it just felt like it was forced.

Who got the most and least out of last night's show?

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Winner: Daniel Bryan

Daniel Bryan is one of the most remarkable performers in the industry. On a dime, he has become a beloved babyface again, after having one of the best heel runs in years. All he needed to do was ally with Roman Reigns against Harper, and Rowan and suddenly everyone loves him again. He's that convincing. Suddenly, the attacks on Roman Reigns that started this whole thing feel like afterthoughts.

A tag team match was made for Hell in a Cell between these four men. It should be a good one. One wonders where Bryan and Reigns will go from here once this is over, though, especially with Brock Lesnar likely to be Champion again.

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Loser: Kofi Kingston

Kofi Kingston and Brock Lesnar have more history than what was discussed on the show. The interview didn't do much to add to the excitement about next week's match. A video detailing Kingston and Lesnar's history (Beast in the East), his incredible rise to the title, and how it contrasts with Lesnar's lazy persona would have done much better.

This was basically just a bland Michael Cole interview.

All indications are that the storybook title reign is coming to an end. This didn't do much to add to the tragedy that we should feel like we're going to witness next week.

Winner: Chad Gable

Chad Gable registered a victory against Mike Kanellis last night. That isn't anything to write home about, but it at least shows WWE's willingness to maintain his momentum for now. Where he goes from here is still an open question. It looks like he'll be facing Elias next week, but that again isn't much to write home about.

Let's see if he gets a big match at Hell in a Cell or a prominent spot at Survivor Series.

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Loser: Ali

Shinsuke Nakamura and Ali had a good TV match last night, with Sami Zayn doing his best to run interference on the Intercontinental Champion's behalf. This eventually led to Ali's defeat with a distraction and a surprise Kinshasa.

The win on Nakamura's part was dirty, but the fact that the match took place last night instead of on a pay-per-view probably means that Ali isn't going to press the issue into a title shot. We'll see.

Winners: Asuka and Kairi Sane

Asuka and Kairi Sane still exist. Imagine that. They won a rather pedestrian victory over Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville last night. This tag team thing is basically a waste for both of them, but it's better than being invisible, right?

It feels like this team has a ceiling, but we'll see where it all goes.

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Loser: Kevin Owens

Kevin Owens challenged Shane McMahon to a ladder match, where the loser would be out of WWE. That's good news in a way, because it means that Shane McMahon will be taking a break from TV soon. Unfortunately, it's still a chore to watch, and this rivalry is doing nothing for Kevin Owens at the moment, who should have capitalized after a hot summer.

This is what happens when rivalries go on too long. It should have ended at SummerSlam. Instead, Kevin Owens is starting the fall on a low note, where he'll have to build his heat back up, if he even can build it back up.