10 Times WWE Screwed Up With Seth Rollins
The architects of his downfall...
CM Punk once famously called Vince McMahon "a millionaire who should be a billionaire," and given the way that WWE has handled Seth Rollins - a star who should be a superstar - over the past seven years, it's not hard to see why.
Rollins has continuously been one of the most talented men on WWE's roster, ever since getting called up from NXT in late 2012. He already had a reputation as an incredible independent talent before the company ever signed him, but once he hit the big time, he adjusted to it perfectly.
While Rollins was initially seen as "the workhorse" of The Shield, it wasn't long before he proved that he had the presence of Roman Reigns and the charisma of Dean Ambrose. When he split from the group and turned heel, he soon became the most promising young star WWE had seen in years.
Three years later, though, Rollins is a tepid babyface who's not considered a threat to the Universal Championship or Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar's dominance of the Raw brand. Though he's only 31 and still has many years left to his career, this wasn't where fans expected to see him now. What went wrong? Bad booking, of course.
Here are 10 time WWE screwed up with Seth Rollins:
10. A Long Gestation
Tyler Black was only 24 years old when he was signed up by WWE, but he was already one of the most respected workers on the U.S. independent scene. The wrestling prodigy had quickly risen through the ranks of Ring of Honor, winning the World Tag Team Titles twice before capturing the ROH World Championship at the company's 8th Anniversary Show.
Black was renamed Seth Rollins, and WWE fans who were familiar with his work anxiously awaited his impending main roster debut. It turned out that they would have quite a bit of time to wait. Despite the fact that Rollins needed very little actual development, he spent more than two years in WWE's developmental system.
During his tenure, Rollins became a Grand Slam Champion in Florida Championship Wrestling, then became the first-ever NXT Champion when that brand was established. Through it all, though, grapplers such as Vladimir Kozlov and The Great Khali were mainstays on TV while Rollins allegedly needed more seasoning.