WWE Draft 2019: Grading each show's divisions after the two-night event

WWE Draft 2019 had its share of ups and downs over its two nights on SmackDown and RAW. Overall, both shows were left with decent depth in their Singles division. However, both tag team divisions still need a lot of work.

Neither show really blew the other away with its selections as each show managed to draft top Superstars. SmackDown has Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns and The Fiend while RAW is anchored by Seth Rollins, AJ Styles, and Becky Lynch.

The strangest move involved Bray Wyatt going to SmackDown. His whole act has been the most entertaining part of the WWE since his return, but moving to the Blue brand may change things significantly. And that would be a huge shame.

Whatever the case was, both brands gained crucial Superstars over the last week. The main question is which brand won the draft? While I believe neither brand was a clear winner, certain divisions on the shows appear stronger than their counterparts. Here are grades for each division following the draft.

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RAW's Women's Division

Members: Becky Lynch (Champion), Natalya, Charlotte Flair, Liv Morgan, Kabuki Warriors (Women's Tag Team Champions), IIconics, Sarah Logan, Zelina Vega

Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair are likely to carry this division until any other potential roster shake-up. Asuka would be the third top star in the new RAW division but she has already feuded with both Flair and Lynch in the past. She's also been transitioned into tag team competition with Kairi Sane. Individually, that would be a good top four.

The IIconics are entertaining but have never been taken seriously as threats. That may continue for Peyton Royce and Billie Kay. Liv Morgan has the potential to move up the ladder as should Sarah Logan.

Logan is perhaps one of the more underutilized female talents in the WWE. Her first promo with the Riott Squad might have set her back promo-wise, but she's solid in the ring and is a physical threat. Mostly, Natalya will be kept atop the division due to her trust from people backstage, but she isn't as exciting or a must-watch.

Overall, the division has potential but it all comes down to how much Flair and Lynch. It's already been the norm for the last three years. They need to push someone new as a top player in the division. Who will be the next Superstar?

Grade: B-

RAW's Tag Team Division

Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford joined RAW during the draft.

Teams: The Viking Raiders (Champions), The OC, the Street Profits, Zack Ryder, and Curt Hawkins

It's difficult to grade the Tag Team division accurately because there are still unassigned teams like The Usos and the Authors of Pain sitting out there. Either team joining RAW or SmackDown would immediately improve that brand's division.

As Dio Maddin said on Raw during the proceedings, this division is certainly looking towards the future. And adding the last two teams to hold the NXT Tag Team titles before the Undisputed Era confirms the same. The Viking Raiders and the Street Profits are both unique and exciting teams that can carry the division in the future.

The OC and Ryder and Hawkins are the veteran groups that are elevated when needed. The duo of Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows should be treated as one of the top teams in the company but they have fallen back to being the muscle for AJ Styles. In fact, they've already won and lost the titles in the span of two months over the summer.

Grade: B-

RAW's Mid-Card Division

Members: Andrade, Rusev, Aleister Black, Cedric Alexander, Buddy Murphy, Erick Rowan, Jinder Mahal, R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, Ricochet, Bobby Lashley

In my opinion, the RAW mid-card was the biggest winner in the draft. They added Andrade, Aleister Black and Buddy Murphy to Cedric Alexander, Ricochet, Rey Mysterio and Bobby Lashley. The first three men could all become big stars in the future if they get the right people behind them.

Black is unlike any of the other Superstars on the roster and Andrade could be that big Latino star that WWE have desperately been looking for. In three matches on SmackDown, Murphy has already showcased that he should be given more chances going forward.

We already know what Lashley, Mysterio, Mahal, R-Truth, and Rusev can do and they should provide the newer stars with good challenges. Erick Rowan is a wildcard because we don't know if he will continue a push further up the card or if he will stay in the mid-card after his feud with Roman Reigns. This group will obviously have members move up to the main event and/or form tag teams.

Others like Humberto Carillo, Akira Tozawa, Shelton Benjamin, EC3, Eric Young, Mojo Rawley, No Way Jose, and Sin Cara will help the mid-card but may not have much of a chance of advancing.

Grade: A

RAW's Main Event

Members: Drew McIntyre, Randy Orton, Seth Rollins (Universal Champion), Kevin Owens, AJ Styles (US Champion), Samoa Joe

Drew McIntyre is the most important name who could turn this into being a truly great division. He's slated to return from injury but desperately needs a shot in the arm. Of the men listed above, he's hasn't feuded with any at length. He did have feuds against Rollins as parts of groups but they only faced each other one-on-one a few times. McIntyre could make the grade GO much higher if they push him to the top where he belongs.

Randy Orton adds name value but represents the past. He's also feuded with AJ Styles and Rollins before. That won't add anything new to main-event feuds should Rollins retain the Universal Championship against the Fiend. Samoa Joe has also feuded with most of the big names on RAW. Is someone going to turn face to balance things out?

Like in every instance, stars from the mid-card will occasionally move up to help fill things out. In that case, the future is solid. Superstars like Bobby Lashley and Rey Mysterio are reliable veterans, but the likes of Ricochet, Andrade, Aleister Black, and Buddy Murphy should bethe future Superstars if booked right.

Grade: A-

SmackDown's Women's Division

Bayley became a two-time SmackDown Women's Champ after regaining her title last week.

Members: Sasha Banks, Lacey Evans, Bayley (Champion), Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Carmella, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Dana Brooke, Tamina

Before the major roster move that saw Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross traded to SmackDown for future considerations, this division was likely going to end up being one of the worst in the WWE. But after that move and the free-agent additions like 'Fire and Desire', it has been saved.

Both Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville are one push away from breaking out. Each woman has proven their value in their respective roles. Rose excels as the manipulative braggart who relies on her looks while Deville has nailed the silent muscle role.

Carmella will likely get boosted up the card as one of the brand's top faces. It will clash with Bayley's recent heel turn as the two women are well-known friends outside of the ring. Hopefully, for Mella, she can meet the challenge instead of riding on Truth's back in comedic skits. Lacey Evans is also a wildcard as she is still relatively young in terms of her main-roster tenure.

Dana Brooke has improved but is still likely to be at the bottom of the division with Tamina. Tamina recently returned to pick up a brief 24/7 title reign, but she's failed to improve in her entire WWE career. If she isn't paired with another Superstar as she has been in the past, it'll be the status quo for her on SmackDown.

Grade: B

SmackDown's Tag Team Division

The Revival are the current SmackDown Tag Team Champs.

Teams: The New Day, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode, The Revival (Champions), B-Team, Heavy Machinery, Lucha House Party

This division breaks down into two groups for me with the first group consisting of The New Day, the Revival, and Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode. Those three teams are the best in the new division and will carry it most of the time. The other group consists of Heavy Machinery, the B-Team, and The Lucha House Party.

Heavy Machinery will probably continue to get title shots and may even get a reign sometime in the next year, owing to the lack of depth in the division. But none of these three teams is on the level of the first group.

Sure, Roode and Ziggler literally teamed up about a month ago and won titles but they are both great Singles stars. The Lucha House Party are fun and athletic but they aren't really a threat to win the belts. The B-Team had their time in the sun and are likely at the bottom of the division. Adding a team like AOP would do wonders for the division but they might be going elsewhere.

Grade: B

SmackDown's Mid-Card Division

Nakamura is the current Intercontinental Champion, but for how long?

Members: Chad Gable, King Corbin, Shinsuke Nakamura (Intercontinental Champion), Sami Zayn, Ali, The Miz, Elias, Apollo Crews, Cesaro

One area where SmackDown falls short compared to RAW is the mid-card. The division is filled with a lot of talented names - Gable, Nakamura, Ali, Elias, Crews, Cesaro - but less than a handful of those men will be booked well. Crews and Cesaro are extremely talented but aren't booked accordingly.

Gable might be getting a push forward with the 'Shorty Gable' gimmick and Corbin has his fans backstage. The Miz is more of a gatekeeper as is Zayn. Elias should be a bigger star but people think he doesn't need a title to remain over. I disagree to a point because it would help elevate him up the card.

Drake Maverick, Drew Gulak, Heath Slater and Luke Harper also joined the blue brand as free agents, but their push is probably very limited. Harper was only brought back for the Roman Reigns storyline and Rowan is on RAW now. Gulak is great in the ring but probably won't get pushed as he should. Slater and Maverick are good comedic talents and will struggle to move up.

Grade: B

SmackDown's Main Event

Members: Braun Strowman, 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt, Roman Reigns, Daniel Bryan, Brock Lesnar (WWE Champion)

The names may be impressive, but only two of them have had meaningful title runs in the WWE (Daniel Bryan and Brock Lesnar). For whatever reason, management has always halted any title push for both Strowman and Wyatt despite being immensely over with the WWE Universe. Wyatt won the WWE Championship for about a month before dropping it to Orton at WrestleMania 33. Is this finally the time for one or both of the men to finally get a meaningful run with a top prize?

That all comes down to the whims of Brock Lesnar, just like it has with the Universal Championship on RAW. It's disappointing for the fans and the rest of the roster. Cain Velasquez should not be winning a big title in the WWE, but it might happen due to his history with Lesnar and cross-over appeal.

Roman Reigns was SmackDown's first pick in the draft. He has formed an alliance with Daniel Bryan. SmackDown has the potential to script an engaging storyline involving both these Superstars. But there's still time before 'The Big Dog' headlines a pay-per-view.

Others from the mid-card have the potential to move up. King Corbin was one of the main heels on RAW after the Shake-up and over the summer, he received three Universal Championship shots in a row. Nakamura and The Miz have had title shots in the past but this division needs some other big names to sustain it in the long run.

Grade: B-

Conclusion

Unfortunately, Carmella and Truth were separated in the WWE Draft.

Both RAW and SmackDown were set up well in the most recent roster shake up. A lot of big names switched brands including Charlotte Flair, The Fiend, Randy Orton, and Sasha Banks. The main objective of the WWE Draft was to bolster each division. The tag team divisions are in better shape now than they were after WrestleMania 35.

The RAW Women's division was in dire need of some reinforcements and the draft provided it with just that. SmackDown's women's division was stacked before the draft but lost some depth to keep both divisions full of potential.

SmackDown might lack in some main-event power, especially if the current WWE Champion, Brock Lesnar, continues his usual schedule of sporadic appearances and defenses. More trades could happen, but that is unlikely with things slated to return to normal operating procedures following the draft.

Although some of the grades given to RAW would suggest it won the draft, that is just a reflection of the potential in each division. It all comes down to how feuds and storylines are booked and if some newer stars are given chances.

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Edited by Shruti Sadbhav