10 Consequences Daniel Bryan's Neck Injury Could Cause WWE

10. He Is On The Injured List Over Two Months

The whispered fear everyone in WWE has right now is that Bryan will be out of action for beyond two months. Given how much investment has been made in the star it would be a critical and commercial disaster to see his big push cancelled. WWE are siding with optimism so far, emphasising that the surgery is minimally invasive. The fact that Bryan's exit angle on Raw left him still in position as WWE Champion suggests the company really does believe his surgery won't be too disruptive. That means he could be back within anywhere between two weeks and six weeks if all goes well. On that kind of time-frame, WWE would be willing to let him stay champion. Missing one pay per view is fine, missing two would be trickier to do (particularly since WWE unified the championships, and a big show needs a traditional title main event in most cases). Even the six week time-out could be seen as too much, but what alternative do WWE really have? Bryan is a commodity they want to keep hot. Perhaps he returns after two weeks but in a none-wrestling role, eventually competing on June 29th at Money In The Bank. Anything beyond that and WWE are going to be really hurt by Bryan's absence. Austin and Edge ended up out of action for over a year, the worst case scenario is that Bryan needs that sort of rehab. Let's hope it doesn't prove the case.