10 Lessons WWE Can Learn From The First Brand Extension

10. General Manager Consistency

More than likely, when the second brand extension happens, Shane McMahon will run one show (rumored to be Smackdown) and Stephanie McMahon will run the other (presumably Raw). If WWE is truly to learn their lesson from the first brand extension, they should keep those two in power as long as possible.

The first brand extension had way too many general manager changes. Raw had the most consistency with Eric Bischoff, who held the role from 2002 until late 2005. After him, Raw's management never caught its footing. From Jonathan Coachman to William Regal to celebrity guest hosts to Bret Hart to a computer (which turned out to be Hornswoggle??), Raw was bogged down by its authority figure rather than focusing on the wrestlers.

Smackdown wasn't much better. After Stephanie McMahon left in late 2003 to get married to Triple H in real life, Smackdown had its own mishmosh of general managers, from Paul Heyman to Kurt Angle to Vickie Guerrero (who also managed Raw). The most consistent general manager was Theodore Long, who managed Smackdown on two different occasions. He rarely made the storylines about himself, and let the wrestling speak for itself. His only real involvement was to make the occasional tag team match (playa).

If Shane and Stephanie are going to run Raw and Smackdown, WWE would be wise to keep it that way for a while.