'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
On the first episode of WWE SmackDown since Survivor Series 2020, the events that transpired at the PPV had serious aftermath. From new challengers for the tag team champions to the confusing relationship between Roman Reigns and Jey Uso, there are a lot of interesting storylines that have the attention of fans right now.
In addition to that, Sasha Banks finally confronted Carmella, and the two Superstars were involved in a backstage altercation. Moreover, Daniel Bryan challenged Sami Zayn for the Intercontinental Championship, which the latter retained.
In this article, we will take a look at those Superstars who flopped and those who impressed on WWE SmackDown this week. So, without further ado, let’s begin.
Trending
#3 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Jey Uso
Jey Uso kickstarted this week’s episode of WWE SmackDown as he praised Roman Reigns for beating Drew McIntyre at Survivor Series 2020. Now, if you remember it was Jey Uso who ran interference and attacked McIntyre which ultimately helped Reigns in sealing the victory. It appeared that Jey Uso was happy to have been involved in the huge win for his Tribal Chief.
However, Reigns didn’t feel the same way. He walked out and continued to insult Jey Uso and questioned his cousin’s intentions on WWE SmackDown. He also went on to belittle Jey Uso and said that he never asked for the latter’s help. Following this interaction, Roman Reigns left a confused Jey Uso inside the ring. He then got extremely angry and attacked Otis who was just making his entrance for a match against Baron ‘King’ Corbin.
Jey Uso continued to brutalize Otis with a chair, which forced the officials to come out and separate them. He did the same to Daniel Bryan before Kevin Owens came out and attacked Jey Uso. He then challenged Reigns’ authority and questioned his treatment of his family members. Later, Jey Uso locked horns with KO in a brutal main event on WWE SmackDown that finally ended in a disqualification for the former after he decided to use a chair once again.
Both Superstars continued to brawl and made this feud look extremely intense. Jey Uso deserves a lot of credit for nailing his current role of a confused soldier who doesn’t know what he needs to do to please his Chief. With that being said, he is slowly carving an identity for himself and is quickly becoming one of the most promising aspects of WWE SmackDown. Let’s see how things turn out for Jey Uso on the Blue brand.
#2 Flopped on WWE SmackDown: Sami Zayn
Don't get me wrong, this match between Sami Zayn and Daniel Bryan started on a high note on WWE SmackDown. For a while, it looked like this Intercontinental Championship match finally brought Zayn back to his best self inside the ring. Unfortunately, that illusion was shattered soon after Zayn retained his title via countout. The creative team might have thought that this is the best decision for the champion, but it ended up making him look incredibly weak.
Sami Zayn became the only champion from WWE SmackDown to lose at Survivor Series 2020 when he got defeated by Bobby Lashley at the recently concluded PPV. It was quite evident that his title reign was nearing its end. But the manner in which it is all happening is quite questionable. Before this, Zayn would at least outsmart his opponent instead of making himself look so weak.
We will probably see Sami Zayna and Daniel Bryan lock horns for the Intercontinental Championship on WWE SmackDown once again. Both Superstars are incredibly talented and can deliver an epic match provided that they are given the time and space to do so. If WWE indeed want to put an end to Zayn's title reign, they should at least ensure that the Champion doesn't end up looking ridiculous. Hopefully, their next match won't meet a disappointing end again.
#2 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode
This week on WWE SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode locked horns with Street Profits in an interesting encounter. Ziggler and Roode were annoyed when The New Day and Street Profits exchanged their tag team titles. They believe that they deserve a title shot, and last night, they finally earned that opportunity.
After sustaining underwhelming losses in the last couple of weeks, Ziggler and Roode stepped up their game. They were more cautious during this match and did a great job in putting the champions over throughout the bout. The closing moments of the match saw Ziggler making the best use of a small window of opportunity to pin Ford on WWE SmackDown.
Now that they have won against the champions, Ziggler and Roode are set to receive their title opportunity on WWE SmackDown. It will be interesting to see how WWE will book this rivalry on the blue brand in the coming weeks. Hopefully all the Superstars involved in this feud will reap the benefits of a good rivalry even if we don’t see the titles change hands.
#1 Flopped on WWE SmackDown: Natalya
On this week's episode of WWE SmackDown, Natalya locked horns with Bianca Belair in a Single's Match. The viewers had huge expectations from this match, but it ended up being quite an underwhelming encounter. After putting up a fairly good performance at Survivor Series, Natalya seemed to have started getting back her momentum, but that wasn't the case.
Her match against Belair on WWE SmackDown last night was -- for the lack of a better word -- boring. She was tricked into a quick roll-up that led to her getting pinned with a few minutes of the first bell. This match also saw Bayley at the announce desk, and the latter was involved in brief segments during the match. Ultimately, Natalya accidentally ended up hitting Bayley, and while she was distracted, Belair made the most of the opportunity.
The only good that came from this match on WWE SmackDown was the creative teasing a plausible alliance between Bayley and Natalya. Bayley was very happy when Natalya qualified for the Survivor Series team, and it appears that regardless of last night's incidents, both these heels could soon find themselves on the same page. Moreover, WWE also teased a possible feud between Bayley and Belair, which would be great for both the Superstars.
#1 Impressed on WWE SmackDown: Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens has struggled to find himself involved in a compelling feud since WrestleMania. However, it now appears that he has something big lined up for him on WWE SmackDown. His altercation with Jey Uso and Roman Reigns looks promising, and the creative have everything that they need to build up a memorable rivalry.
In the main event, Owens and Jey Uso exchanged blows in a highly engaging match. However, their battle ended in a disqualification after Jey Uso used a chair to assault KO, but Owens was not ready to receive a humiliating beatdown once again. Instead, he fought back against Jey Uso and went on to punish the latter with the help of some devastating Stunners.
Owens also used the announce desk to attack Jey Uso and then used his opportunity to call out Roman Reigns. He challenged The Tribal Chief’s authority on WWE SmackDown, while Reigns stared angrily into the TV screen backstage. It will be interesting to see what will happen between the two Superstars as the storyline progresses on WWE SmackDown.
