The recent list of WWE releases demonstrate a profound lack of booking acumen by the company. The release of Aleister Black, especially, made little sense. He had just returned from a lengthy hiatus – debuting a refined and rejuvenated version of his character. Black had just began a feud with Big E; the man widely tipped to be the one to eventually oust Roman Reigns from the position of Head of the Table. With E looking to build some momentum before he eventually reaches this point, Black was the perfect opponent to kick-start the road to the title. Alas, it wasn’t to be. Whereas Black is gone from the WWE, Big E remains. Therefore, what’s next for the former Intercontinental Champion?
A feud With King Corbin?
This one goes first because it is one of the least likely, as well as the most uninspiring. King Corbin has become something of a journeyman heel in the WWE. He tends to lose most of his matches and feuds, yet he somehow maintains the distinction of being one of the better heels in the WWE today. Though a feud with Corbin would not necessarily be our pick for Big E, at least Corbin is a genuine heel. The fans would be firmly behind E dethroning the pauper King. The issue is, of course, it is difficult to envision this duo having good matches with one another. As most big men do, Corbin works best with smaller guys. The near-seven foot King relies on the smaller competitor taking the bumps. Whereas Big E is indeed a fair bit shorter than Corbin, he is not necessarily a smaller man – and certainly not a small competitor. So whereas a feud with Corbin, if done right, could assist Big E, the matches do nothing for him. With fans returning to arenas just next month, they will want to see some exciting action.
Big E Could Chase The Intercontinental Championship Again?
This makes little sense, as he has been knocked out of contention (with thanks to the departed Aleister Black) and should be moving onto bigger things. However, with Apollo Crews once more overcoming Kevin Owens last night – and Sami Zayn proceeding to beat-down his fellow Canadian – this leaves a void in the contender position, which will likely be filled by our resident pancake machine. At this stage, E should be entering into a big feud and whereas Apollo would be that, it does not fit at this current stage. E needs to enter onto a white hot winning streak. When the fans return on July 16, it is important they they are fully behind Big E – should he indeed be the “chosen one” to defeat Roman Reigns. With Apollo on the best run of his career, there is little need for him to be dropping the championship at this stage. Additionally, and most importantly, Big E does not need to be losing matches – no matter how questionable the circumstances. Therefore, this feud, though both possible and likely, does not need to be revisited.
Revisiting Seth Rollins vs Big E?
Now this would be a better fit. Not only is Seth Rollins the biggest heel outside of Roman Reigns right now, he could also have great matches with Big E. Additionally, there is plenty of history between the two, which could be revisited for maybe the first time on the WWE main roster. Seth was the first ever NXT Champion. The man to end that reign? Why, it was the former Big E Langston, of course. Not only is there history, but in the current, they are a perfect match for each other. Seth Rollins – with the “drip” heavy suits and shades – is an outlandish, often over the top heel. Despite this, he can back it up and is as sinister a heel as they come. Big E is an outlandish, often over the top babyface who the fans were – and no doubt remain – fully behind. They have the history, they have the current dynamics in place and they can have both stellar matches and feud. Therefore, should the WWE go down this route, it will put Big E onto the path he needs to take to eventually bring down the Tribal Chief.
“Main Event” Jey Uso?
Right now, Jey Uso might just be enduring his transition back to babyfacedom. With the returning Jimmy Uso seemingly assisting the pacified Jey in questioning the brutishly despicable antics of his cousin, a feud with Jey might be off the cards – but what if it isn’t? After all, it is equally possible that Jey turns on Jimmy, with the influence of the Tribal Chief merely too strong to break. Additionally, Jimmy might be converted to the dark side, himself. So two of these three outcomes might lead to a feud with Big E. Though it seems unlikely currently, especially if The Usos become a regular team again, it is possible. It would be the ultimate gateway into a feud with Roman. He would act dismissive of Big E – acting as though he does not recognize the threat of the former New Day hype man. Visibly, however, we would be able to tell that Roman not only recognizes the threat of Big E, he fears it. For years, it has been speculated that towards the beginning of the 2010s, there were two men handpicked to be the face of the WWE post-John Cena. One was, of course, Roman Reigns – the man who became just that. The other? Big E. Roman fears Big E because E poses a threat to his likelihood. His very existence as the face of the company came at the expense of Big E. Now that Big E is hungry and has his mind focused on the WWE Universal Championship, Roman will have to act. A dominant showing by Big E in a feud with either Uso would lead to precisely that.
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