The biggest winners and losers from Friday Night SmackDown (September 11, 2020)

The Sept. 11 edition of SmackDown began with a tribute to the victims of the attacks 19 years ago. Longtime WWE fans will remember that SmackDown was the first major event to resume broadcasting following the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. 19 years later, the blue brand paid homage to that and built up to Clash of Champions, which is just over two weeks away.

With the event coming up, who got the most and least out of the action on Friday's SmackDown? Let's take a look.

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SmackDown Winner: Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns had something of a passive-aggressive exchange with Jey Uso early in the night. He respected him as a family member but told him straight up that he would beat him at Clash of Champions and that he wasn't material for the Universal title.

In the main event, he and Uso took on Baron Corbin and Sheamus, but he left his cousin to fend for himself for almost the entirety of the match. Roman Reigns only came in and stole the victory out from under Jey's nose after all of his hard work.

These kinds of ambiguous heel traits make Roman Reigns a more interesting character than a generic villain, with lots of ground to explore by the time he moves on to serious threats to his title. It should be a fun journey.

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Losers: Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura

Seeing the SmackDown tag team champions lose to the Lucha House Party in a non-title match will always leave a bitter taste in the viewers' mouths. Perhaps WWE has tried to revive the Lucha House Party in recent weeks, but they were treated as such a joke for years that a reinvention won't come easily.

The champions will likely beat them at the Clash and move on, but WWE clearly still hasn't corrected all of its negative booking tendencies.

SmackDown Winner: Bayley

On Friday's episode of SmackDown, Bayley explained her reasons for attacking Sasha Banks. She said that she knew Banks would turn on her, so she wanted to be the one to turn first. The Role Model also revealed that she was using Banks all along; their close relationship was just an act.

It was something you'd expect, but Bayley delivered her promo so well that it made up for the predictability. She has become a natural in this role as a heel on SmackDown. It will be interesting to see Sasha Banks' response.

WWE seemingly wants to build the reverse image of their classic clash at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn five years ago and right now, the company is well on its way. We'll just have to wait to see when the eventual match will end up. Excluding the brand warfare at Survivor Series, the next major event on the WWE calendar is Royal Rumble 2021, which is over four months away.

Can the company hold out that long or will they settle this confrontation at a minor fall event instead? Hell in a Cell might not be the worst idea.

SmackDown Winners: Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross

Alexa Bliss hit her former tag team partner with Sister Abigail, making her descent to the dark side more obvious. Nevertheless, Nikki Cross still won her match anyway and vowed to save her friend afterward. As the new number one contender, she will compete in a title match with Bayley at Clash of Champions. However, the story with Alexa Bliss is the real item on the agenda. The company is well on its way to strengthening the SmackDown women's division as a result.

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Loser: Otis

Otis defeated John Morrison on Friday night on SmackDown and revealed that the briefcase he carried off last week only contained the an apple core.

Ever since the romantic story with Many Rose ended, Otis' star has faded fast. He, in no way shape, or form, resembles someone who could be a legitimate ch Roman Reigns right now. It seems like WWE is regretting the choice to give him the Money in the Bank briefcase.

At this rate, he's would likely fail to cash in the Money in the Bank contract. The question is whether WWE will try to salvage this.