How Good Was Babyface Roman Reigns Actually?

5. Rivalries

Reigns’ first feud after the breakup of The Shield was with Randy Orton. It was during this rivalry that the writing was on the wall that Roman was being catapulted to the top of WWE, but he never really looked comfortable on his own. That was a problem - everyone put into a feud with Reigns was trying to make him look like Superman, but these were largely seasoned veterans at the top of their craft.

Brock Lesnar is the person most associated with Reigns in this period, as they headlined 2 WrestleManias and a SummerSlam together, but they never had any spark. Lesnar is a man who lets his actions do the talking. Paul Heyman is arguably the best talker in wrestling history and therefore created a chasm between himself and Reigns’ mic ability. Whilst a Seth Rollins’ cash-in saved Lesnar and Reigns' decent 'Mania 31 main event, both men were roundly booed and rejected by the crowd when headlining 34 in New Orleans years later.

If Cena had been the blueprint for the vast majority of Reigns’ push to little avail, then WWE went the Steve Austin route for Roman in 2016. Vince, alongside Stephanie and Triple H, conspired to try to stack the deck against him in an attempt to get fans to rally behind their new hero. They made him defend the WWE Title in the Royal Rumble and put him at #1 before crowning Hunter as the new champion at the end of the night.

This all felt futile too, as nobody could believe that Roman wasn’t a corporately-appointed stooge who was going to (and did) emerge victorious against Triple H at 'Mania 32. The idea that this man with 10/10 good looks and a family lineage in the business (who'd been rammed down fans' throats for almost 2 years straight) was somehow “one against all” was impossible to buy.

The only saving grace for Roman from this entire saga was his feud with Rollins. It always feels personal between the pair, and their feuds had more engagement from fans than Reigns had mustered up to this point. Rollins had the fan support in their 2016 feud, despite being booked as the heel, but WWE refused to turn Reigns into a villain and see if it would work. It was a misfire, but at least moments like Rollins winning the WWE title from Roman at Money In The Bank 2016 and during his WrestleMania 31 cash-in gave them a history that they can still use to this day.

Roman created great matches during these years with AJ Styles, Braun Strowman and as part of 2 separate Shield reunions, but none of these feuds helped change fans’ opinions on Reigns.

5/10