10 Wrestlers AEW Let Slip Through Their Fingers
8. John Morrison
When John Morrison left WWE in 2011, it was widely believed he'd be back within a year or two. That year or two turned into almost a decade, and during his time away, he became a much more complete performer in promotions such as IMPACT, Lucha Underground and AAA.
The Shaman of Sexy has gone on record in recent years in saying that his end goal was always to return to WWE, and in December 2019, it finally happened. This came after he departed IMPACT in July, though fans figured at the time that he was AEW bound along with fellow ex-IMPACT employees Santana and Ortiz.
After all, he'd be given much more creative freedom in AEW and would be able to continue acting and producing on the side if he wanted. Then again, at the age of 40, it was probably now or never for him to go back to WWE. There was no guarantee he'd be successful, but perhaps that was a risk he was willing to take.
In other words, he didn't need AEW as much as AEW needed him. That isn't to say he would have been a world championship contender upon his debut on Dynamite had he gone there, but there's zero doubt he would have been a bigger pickup for them than the creatively-damaged Jake Hager.