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WWE dropped the news that The Rock would be crashing SmackDown in New Orleans just 24 hours before the show hit the airwaves. His "appearance" was one of the strangest moments of WWE programming in 2025.
Shinsuke Nakamura again had less than three minutes of air time while Zelina Vega reintroduced herself with a brief vignette. GM Nick Aldis promised Canadian Chelsea Green would get a match in Toronto . . . on next week's SmackDown.
Kevin Owens cut a phone promo from outside of Sami Zayn's house. Due to The Rock's appearance, a lot of the show and matches were seemingly shifted around. It showed, and not in a good way. Here's the best and worst of SmackDown this week.
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#3. Best/Worst - The Street Profits disrupt a good match
Immediately after The Rock's questionable segment, DIY defended their titles against Pretty Deadly. Elton Prince and Kit Wilson wasted little time, attacking the champs while their entrance music still played.
The challengers proved they could be serious as they took it to Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa for the duration of the match.
As the crowd started to get behind Pretty Deadly, the Street Profits came out of the crowd to interfere. They laid out both teams and did the same when the Motor City Machine Guns came down to try and stop them.
The situation makes Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford seem like children who didn't get their way. After 30 minutes of The Final Boss, the following segment on SmackDown needed to land. It did so but without style points.
#3. Worst - Tiffany Stratton needs more help than Trish Stratus
Ever since Tiffany Stratton won the WWE Women's Title, her segments have been paint-by-number. She talks for a few minutes but then Nia Jax kills the vibe by interrupting.
She says she wants her title back and Candice LeRae barks like her puppy. That's exactly what happened on SmackDown again this week, but WWE then gave Charlotte Flair a full entrance, complete with graphics, during the match.
The Queen joined commentary but didn't say anything she hadn't already said 100 times. Even Trish Stratus couldn't help the segment since Jax sat on both women. Stratton has done fine as champion but needs much better booking.
#2. Best - R-Truth's "Homegrown" tag team partner
While The Miz and R-Truth getting more time than United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura is disheartening, Truth excels with his character. His comedy is always a bright spot.
On a night when a lot didn't make sense on SmackDown, Truth's work helped immensely. Before his tag team match with Miz and Carmelo Hayes, he mentioned his partner was Louisiana royalty and was born and bred in New Orleans.
It turned out to be LA Knight, but Truth confused his initials for Louisiana's state abbreviation. He gave The Megastar beads and a Po Boy Sandwich as they went to the ring.
While Nakamura interfered to help Miz and Hayes win, Truth and Knight made everything work. Even Wade Barrett was incredulous as to why people loved Truth's escapades.
#2. Best/Worst - A questionable decision ahead of a huge PLE
Like most of their matches before, the action was fine between Drew McIntyre and Jimmy Uso. Jimmy got a roll-up win on SmackDown, which may have helped him.
However, McIntyre shouldn't be losing a week before the Elimination Chamber Premium Live Event. The Scottish Warrior got his heat back with a post-match attack, but the loss shouldn't have happened in the first place.
The other issue is that Jimmy is trying to set himself apart from Jey, yet he has the same entrance but from backstage, uses the same moves, and has a variation of Jey's catchphrase.
#2. Worst - The Neverending Feud continues on SmackDown
Liv Morgan, Bianca Belair, Naomi, and Raquel Rodriguez have been feuding since October 2024. It was primarily to set up WarGames in late November, but the two sides have continued to battle well into 2025.
The strange part is that Morgan and Rodriguez belong to RAW yet have appeared on nearly every SmackDown this year. Belair and Naomi have been all over programming as well, but are tag champs.
Morgan and Rodriguez already lost in their bid to win the tag titles. That hasn't stopped bookers from continuing the feud. Belair and Naomi have faced Morgan in singles action as well. The rosters are locked in but WWE has the same feuds on SmackDown.
#1. Best - WWE desperately missed Alexa Bliss
The majority of women in WWE have trouble cutting good promos. Most say the same things every time, including some top names. Alexa Bliss, however, is in a different class.
Along with Becky Lynch, Chelsea Green, and Bayley, Bliss is one of the few women who are believable no matter what she says. After a triumphant return at the Royal Rumble, the former champ qualified for the Elimination Chamber.
She mentioned how a lot changed in her absence and that she also changed a lot while away. Throughout the promo, her tone teetered on the line of sanity.
Bliss's short promo stood out on a night full of more misses than hits, especially with the SmackDown women's division.
#1. Best/Worst - Good storytelling but bad luck for Jacob Fatu
While WWE inexplicably had Drew McIntyre lose a week before the Elimination Chamber, they didn't make the same mistake with Priest. Along with Braun Strowman, the former World Heavyweight Champ defeated Solo Sikoa and Fatu.
There was clear tension between the two Samoans, but they fought together until the closing moments. Fatu accidentally hit Solo with a Superkick, leading to the finishing sequence.
Priest hit Sikoa with a South of Heaven Chokeslam for the win. While The Archer of Infamy needed a win ahead of next week's PLE, it puts yet another loss on Fatu's resume.
He hasn't been pinned yet but has lost his last four matches. Sowing dissension was great, but The Samoan Werewolf is far too over with fans to keep losing.
#1. Worst - The Rock's wants Cody Rhodes' . . . soul?
WWE made a huge deal about The Rock's last-minute addition to SmackDown this week. His spot forced a rewrite for many segments, causing a disconnected show throughout the night. It seems to be a trend with The Final Boss in 2025.
WWE used nearly 30 minutes for The People's Champion to announce New Orleans would host next year's WrestleMania 42. After that, he took nearly 20 minutes of rambling to reveal that he and Rhodes had become friends - and so had their mothers - after WrestleMania 40.
That's great for them but the fans never saw or heard about it until after sitting through Rocky's three promos in 2025. He finally revealed that he wanted Rhodes to "Be his Champion."
Was it because his cousin Roman didn't have the title anymore and wanted to be a champ vicariously through Cody? Rocky also claimed he wanted Cody's soul before saying he'd expect an answer at the Elimination Chamber. The whole segment was confusing and weird, and that's us being generous.
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