Veteran to make WWE SmackDown return after 5 years, join The Rock and Roman Reigns against Cody Rhodes? Swerve explored

At WrestleMania 40, Cody Rhodes will challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. The last time Rhodes faced Reigns, things went wrong for him after Solo Sikoa interfered in the match and helped The Tribal Chief retain his title.

Hence, when The American Nightmare comes face-to-face this time, he will do everything in his power to win. However, before Cody Rhodes can think of beating Roman Reigns, he must also understand that the latter has support from The Bloodline and The Rock. While this is bad for Rhodes, things could get even worse.

One NXT star who had once badly injured Rhodes could join Reigns and inflict further damage on the former. The star in question is Shawn Spears, who returned to WWE during the latest episode of NXT. During their time in AEW, Spears had once delivered a chair shot to Rhodes, which left the latter in a pool of blood and gave him a concussion.

Hence, given there is a history of bad blood between the two, Paul Heyman could approach Shawn Spears in the coming weeks to form an alliance. Given Spears just returned to WWE, he too would be excited to take the deal as it will give him a boost in popularity and would also increase his chances of featuring on SmackDown more often, five years after he was last on the show.

This could result in Spears first extending a hand of friendship to The American Nightmare, only to betray him at The Show of Shows. The star has returned as a heel and attacked Ridge Holland. Destroying Rhodes' second attempt at finishing the story would garner him immense heat and could catapult his third WWE stint to the next level.

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WWE legend wouldn't mind RAW Superstar costing Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 40

While The Bloodline has many members who will cause trouble for Cody Rhodes, the latter has found support in Seth Rollins. On Monday Night RAW, Rollins volunteered to become a shield for The American Nightmare. However, a WWE legend recently revealed he wouldn't mind seeing a change in plans.

The WWE legend in question is Bully Ray. He said that he likes the idea of Seth Rollins betraying Cody Rhodes because it extends the latter's story. He further added that once the story is over, it's over, and everyone is relying on Rhodes to carry the company for however long.

"I like the idea of Seth sc***ing Cody over because it extends Cody’s story. If they decided to have Seth Rollins sc**w over Cody, I wouldn’t have a problem with it because it would make sense. Once the story’s over, the story’s over. Now, we’re relying on Cody to carry the company for however long."

If Rollins turns his back on Cody Rhodes, he will quickly become one of the biggest heels in the Stamford-based promotion. It will be interesting to see how this story progresses leading up to WrestleMania 40.