10 New Finishers Seth Rollins Should Consider For WWE Return
Potential finishing move with a bit more Pedigree.
For those of us who always look for silver linings, you could say that the only bright side to not seeing Seth Rollins wrestle is not seeing him perform his current finishing manoeuvre.
Seth Rollins is a great, great wrestler. The Pedigree is a great, great finisher. That said, history has proven that putting the two together is not an equally great idea.
In the hands of a more burly wrestler like Triple H, the Pedigree exudes power and control over the opponent. The set-up screams “checkmate” and the driving impact is convincing, even with the early release.
However, in the hands of a middleweight like Rollins, it just falls flat. He often ends up incapable of standing straight with the arms hooked, and more often than not, it's the opponent's weight taking him for a ride rather than vice-versa. Concluding a Seth Rollins match with this move is like Hemingway closing a chapter with a semicolon.
Rather than making a case as to why the Curb Stomp should never have been banned, this article will simply look at some other alternatives for Seth Rollins' finisher. Generally, these will be moves that he uses on occasion, or has used during his years with NXT, ROH and PWG.
Because a talent like Rollins should not be ending a five-star match with an ill-fitting hand-me-down, consider the following ten alternatives…
10. Poisoned Frankensteiner
This one ranks low on the list due to safety issues. A standard rana/Frankensteiner is risky enough, but reverse the motion and you risk turning the average wrestler's tucking reflex into a busy night in the operating room.
That said, the move is in circulation; Rollins has performed the move many times before with confidence and skill, and in all fairness to his talent for protecting his opponents/co-workers, he could be given a pass to do it with the few guys who could take that bump. Seems like a fine spot for a match with Neville, Ziggler or Cena.
Still, this is mainly wishful thinking, as he could never dream of making a full-time finisher out of it. This would leave the Pedigree in service, and might make it look even lamer in contrast.
But hey, at least we're thinking.