10 Ways To Make WWE SmackDown Important On USA Network

5. Minimal Recaps

Anyone who has tried to watch an entire episode of SmackDown will know that a huge proportion of the show is covered by lengthy recaps of the events of Raw. Given that few viewers are likely to tune in for SmackDown having not seen Raw, there's little sense to this technique. Fans who have watched Raw three days prior to SmackDown airing do not need to have entire segments from the Monday night show repeat themselves. SmackDown is at its best when it slims down these recaps. There's nothing wrong with playing out a 30-second cutdown of a Raw segment in order to tee up something that is about to happen on SmackDown. However, too often SmackDown will feature a full Raw segment that has no context within SmackDown. That's when viewers will reach for their remote control. It's always frustrating when WWE resorts to obvious filler techniques in order to meet their required amount of television time, particularly given the benefit that increased in-ring content would have. When SmackDown moves to the USA Network, it should devote itself to delivering original content rather than rehashing that week's other action.