WWE's 8 Most Valuable Players of 2019 so far

#2 Kofi Kingston

Kofimania was the saving grace of WrestleMania season. Up against a great heel in Daniel Bryan, Kofi Kingston struggled in one of the greatest rise to the championship stories of the decade. First came that majestic gauntlet match, the heartbreak in the Elimination Chamber, getting screwed out of Fastlane and in another gauntlet match, until his New Day brothers finally got him the title shot denied to him at WrestleMania.

There, Kofi Kingston won a hard-fought victory and his first WWE Championship in 11 years in what was easily the night's best match.

From there, Kofi Kingston continued his goodwill tour as champion. He hasn't been able to match his rivalry with Daniel Bryan in its intensity, but he's also been given underwhelming rivals in Kevin Owens and Dolph Ziggler.

The coming feud with Samoa Joe should be awesome.

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#1 Daniel Bryan

Obviously, we start with the former WWE Champion. Though it was a much shorter reign than his two immediate predecessors, Daniel Bryan's eco-friendly heel turn saw the WWE Championship get the best run that it's had in years.

Bryan was killing it on the mic every week, telling WWE fans that they were harming the planet. His promos proved consistently entertaining, to the point that the usually tired overlong opening talking segment was actually made good.

He added to his greatness on the microphone with great performances in the ring. Aside from one dud of a match with AJ Styles at the Royal Rumble, his title defenses were always gold, and he was the vital heel in the equation that gave us the best organic rise to the WWE Championship for a babyface since, ironically, Daniel Bryan's own rise to the title at the head of the Yes Movement in 2014.