10 Radical Ideas To Save Dolph Ziggler

Dolph Ziggler’s never been in so much trouble. I’m not referring to overwhelming odds being faced by the character in onscreen storylines, I’m talking about the character himself - the way he’s seen by the fanbase, the position he holds within the narrative, the spot he has on the card.

In 2016, Dolph Ziggler isn’t a fiery babyface on a trajectory to mid- or upper-card glory. He’s not in contention for a championship of any kind, and no one really expects him to be. At best, he’s one of six or seven performers who’ll automatically be selected to lose a multi-man ladder match for such an accolade.

That’s it, really: we’re so used to being disappointed by Ziggler as a babyface contender that we don’t expect anything of him at all anymore. In fact, there are plenty who’d say that it’s too late, that no amount of radical ideas can restore the Show-Off’s credibility now.

Well, an article like this has to assume two things as being true: a desire on the part of the WWE and the performer to change the status quo; and that it’s never too late to do so.

Ziggler is so far gone now that this has to be about more than just turning him heel, placing him into a killer feud or having him win the Intercontinental Championship again. This is about reversing the perception of him as a failure - about finding a way to make his fans believe in the character again.

I’ve been saying this for a while now, but perhaps it’s finally true. With the Dudley Boyz sticking around, the Vaudevillains debuting on Smackdown, Enzo & Cass debuting on RAW and the Balor Club incoming, perhaps now is the perfect time to properly revamp the tag team division.

After all, NXT’s The Revival and American Alpha are two of the most dynamic tag teams in the industry at the moment, and it would be good for them to have a division to join when they’re finally called up to the main roster.

Ordinarily, I'd be violently against singles stars slumming it in the tag division just because Creative is waiting for a window to do something with them. It’s the death of proper tag team wrestling, having established singles competitors teaming up temporarily and wiping the floor with everyone: but this is a little different. This is a case of rehabilitating a wrestler, not having him steamroll a whole division because he’s got nothing better to do.

If Ziggler were partnered with someone interesting, a rookie or someone with untapped potential, he could use what remains of his star aura to legitimise them, making a new star on the back of the old. Give the pair a proper tag team name, matching gear, a couple of tandem finishers, and have the gimmick run for at least a year, duelling with the top tag teams in the business and working nothing but tag team matches.

You can use Ziggler to get his partner over, and the partnership to get Ziggler back over again by proxy. Have the partner be someone from NXT who needs a flamboyant introduction to the main roster (like Tye Dillinger, for example), or have him be another underused wrestler from the main roster whose character needs a serious kick in the pants: a Neville, or a Darren Young.

No one plays Ricky Morton quite like Dolph Ziggler. Proper tag team action doesn’t have to be a demotion if it’s done properly, and if the focus is on restoring the credibility of the performers. Plus, Ziggler’s never won the tag titles...