10 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About Roman Reigns
9. He Wasn’t First Choice For The Shield
This is a bit mad to think about now given all that's happened, but Roman wasn't first pick for a slot in The Shield when WWE started chewing over the brand new faction in 2012. Reportedly, CM Punk (who was tied to the group initially) wanted Chris Hero/Kassius Ohno to be the third man.
Reigns wasn't in the frame, or particularly wanted by Punk.
The remarkable thing here is that Roman went on to become the biggest breakout star of the entire stable. He wasn't even wanted in the group that cemented his name on fan lips though - it was supposed to be Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Ohno. Fittingly, someone said "Oh...no" to that thinking behind the scenes.
It's almost impossible for fans today to think about The Shield debuting without Reigns. He's such a huge part of the gimmick's lore that replacing him with anyone else sounds ridiculous. That very nearly happened though. Things could've been different.