7 Things We Learned From Drew McIntyre On Edge & Christian's Podcast

It was a proud moment for Scottish wrestling fans when Drew McIntyre waltzed onto SmackDown in 2009 and shook hands with Vince McMahon. Dubbed the 'Chosen One' by WWE's boss man, it looked like the Scot was on the fast track to main event stardom, but he began slowly descending down the card before being released in 2014.

Today, Drew is a much wiser man than the fresh-faced newbie who accepted McMahon's endorsement almost 8 years ago. Appearing on Edge & Christian's Pod Of Awesomeness, McIntyre discussed everything from his first run in WWE and time away from the company to his eventual return to the NXT brand.

Both Edge and Christian clearly like Drew. That admiration for what he achieved outside WWE's bubble came across during the interview, as did McIntyre's own dedication, humbleness and sheer passion for pro wrestling.

"Don't play a wrestler, be a wrestler" isn't just a catchy slogan to Drew...

7. He Doesn't Like The Notion That Stars 'Move Up' From NXT

It's generally accepted that NXT is WWE's 'other' brand. Existing just below the main shows like Raw and SmackDown, the show is considered a proving ground for those who hope to jump up to the main roster and become huge stars. A certain Drew McIntyre despises that mindset, because he believes NXT can stand on its own merits.

Specifically, Drew doesn't like when people say wrestlers are 'moving up' from NXT to either Raw or SmackDown. He does acknowledge that the main roster is everybody's goal, but also thinks NXT deserves way more praise than it gets for the sheer amount of talent it has harnessed. That point is definitely a tough one to argue against.

McIntyre is a fan of the WWE Network platform NXT has, feeling it enables fans to become accustomed to characters before they hit the main roster. It's interesting that he staunchly defended the importance of NXT whilst still recognising that the show's main role is to feed ready-made stars to the other brands.