10 Most Overpaid WWE Stars Of 2017

5. Sheamus

Brock Lesnar Loves It
WWE.com

2017 was one of Sheamus' better years in WWE.

His Bar tandem with Cesaro yielded a plethora of absorbing, hard-hitting tag team wars, the best of which were fought opposite Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins over the summer months - and, regrettably, deep into the winter, somewhat diluting the power of the series. Still, you can't exactly begrudge Sheamus for performing his allotted duties in life. More than a match for the punishing WWE grind, he's not one for phoning it in.

It's as if WWE has finally acknowledged that Sheamus simply isn't a headline talent, and he has flourished, free of that weighty expectation - but they apparently still pay him like he's one, which complicates things. His enduring status as a failed headliner experiment, multiple World Title reigns and all, nonetheless grants Sheamus a downside creeping into the low seven-figure category (an apparent $1.1M), which makes sense irrespective of the source - but that is somewhat disproportionate to his dance partner and his opponents, who are, at the very least, equally responsible for the quality of his output.

Sheamus has earned his keep - but perhaps not relatively.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!