WWE Money In The Bank 2019: 5 Potential Finishes for The Usos vs Daniel Bryan and Rowan

Daniel Bryan’s and Rowan will defend their SmackDown Tag Team Championship against The Usos on the pre-show this Sunday leading into Money In The Bank. There’s a deceptively impressive cluster of talent involved here, between Jimmy and Jey as one of the best tag teams of the last decade, Bryan as one of the best individual performers, and Rowan who has done well as Bryan’s sidekick and had a history of performing nicely opposite smaller performers in tag team scenarios.

Bryan and Rowan won the vacant titles by defeating the Usos less than two weeks ago. Add on that the brothers technically moved to Raw, and all the more so given the placement of this match on the pre-show, the odds are very much in favor of the champs retaining. But how do they retain? Or might WWE, which has been prone to some wild swings in recent weeks, stage a barn burner match and a title change here where fans least expect it? This article takes a look at the possibilities.

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#5 Daniel Bryan scores the win

Daniel Bryan picking up the win for his team could balance things between him and Rowan.

Notably, it was Rowan who picked up the fall for his team to win the SmackDown Tag Team Championships. On paper, this could be seen as a surprise given that Daniel Bryan is the much better established star, though some have theorized that this was a measured step toward establishing Rowan as his equal and getting them over less as a star wrestler and his heater, and rather as a legitimate tag team.

To even the scales, though, it would make some sense for Bryan to pick up the victory for his team at Money In The Bank. Whether that means using the Lebell Lock for a tap out or the running knee that Bryan has gotten over as particularly deadly in this heel run, Bryan defeating one of The Usos to retain the titles for his team is a very real possibility at this Sunday’s show.

#4 Rowan asserts his dominance

Rowan could capture the fall for his team again.

Daniel Bryan picking up the victory for his team at Money In The Bank would offer some balance to his and Rowan’s kayfabe contributions to the success of their team. However, if the name of the game is to further establish the new heel champions, there is another perspective WWE could take. Bryan is already an established main event level talent, who as recently as last month was defending a world championship at WrestleMania, whereas Rowan remains a guy who has only won tag team gold, and has generally been perceived as the less accomplished part of his teams with not only Bryan, but Luke Harper before him.

And so, the Money in the Bank SmackDown Tag Team Championship match could be used to push Rowan further. He used his Iron Claw move to pick up the win for his team on SmackDown. Maybe he uses the same move, or otherwise snags the pin for this tandem on Sunday.

#3 Luke Harper appears

Despite rumors Luke Harper is on the outs with WWE management, he could be an interesting insertion to alongside his old partner Rowan.

Luke Harper has been conspicuous in his absence from WWE programming in recent months. First he disappeared when Rowan gut hurt, pressing pause on their Bludgeon Brothers tag team. Then he went down to injury himself. He has been ready for action, but his only televised main roster appearance since has been a totally forgettable spot in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania.

Harper posted to social media about requesting his release, and the rumor mill has swirled about WWE not letting him go, while simultaneously not booking him. Some suggest that this is a matter of setting an example for other wrestlers who might ask for their releases, or else more specifically punishing Harper. In any event, one major swerve at WWE’s disposal would be to reveal that Harper’s backstage issues have been an elaborately worked shoot. Of course, they could also be real, and WWE could use them to their advantage—regardless, the end result could be Harper making a very surprising return alongside his long time partner Rowan to help him in his new team.

#2 Matt Hardy gets involved

Matt Hardy may not be done with the SmackDown tag title picture after all.

The Hardy Boyz beat The Usos for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships very shortly after WrestleMania. It’s unclear what WWE’s original intentions were. Maybe the Hardys were going to reign supreme for an extended run, as something of a throwback and tribute to their tremendous legacy in WWE and beyond. Maybe they were going to drop the titles to Daniel Bryan and Rowan, and The Usos have largely taken their place.

We may never know the original plan or how things would have worked out had Jeff Hardy not gotten hurt, and had The Hardys not had to vacate their titles. Regardless, as far as we know, Matt Hardy is still able to go in the ring, and has a long history of performing as a singles performer, as well as teaming with other partners. Particularly with SmackDown relatively thin on tag team talent after the Superstar Shake Up, WWE could use this Sunday as a platform to reinsert Hardy into the tag team picture, starting out as a renegade on his own, or introducing a new tandem when they play a part in the finish.

#1 The Usos win

The Usos are synonymous with the SmackDown Tag Team Championship. They could always win them back.

The Usos officially moved to Monday Night Raw in the Superstar Shake Up in a move that most fans welcomed. The Usos have done about all they can on SmackDown, working toward the top of the tag team division ever since the new brand split era got rolling. However, in The Usos heading to Raw, Big E’s injury and Kofi Kingston’s singles work mostly removing New Day from the tag team picture, Jeff Hardy’s injury, and The Bar splitting, the blue brand is running pretty dry on tag talent, and particularly tandems ready to carry the brand’s division as champs.

Running with Daniel Bryan and Rowan on top for a while could work well enough, but particularly if WWE wants Bryan back in the WWE Championship picture sooner than later, it may end up making sense to defer The Usos’s Raw push in favor of anchoring SmackDown again. They could win here to give that tag division some stability again and hold off on Monday nights for at least the immediate future, if not another full year.