12 TNA Talents Unfairly Held Back

1. A.J. Styles

What He Was: At times, TNA claimed he was the face of the company. That€™s kind of hard to believe, though, as when WWE talent came in, he'd do the job for them. A perfect example is Styles dropping the TNA title to Rob Van Dam in their first match. The message was clear: former WWE mid-carder > Top TNA wrestler. Styles was often the standout star of the X-Division who then would compete in the heavyweight division before coming back. He was also a dark, brooding character near the end of his run, and played a comedic role for awhile. It was all over the map. What He Should Have Been: The face of the company. TNA had something in Styles. He signed with them in his early 20s and was with them from the very beginning. He was (and still is) a fantastic wrestler and was performing moves that no one in WWE could do. While WWE has John Cena, Styles should have been the top guy in TNA. He should have been the man who never turns heel, never had to play second fiddle to Christian, or had to play Nature Boy Jr., or be the guy who was so sad that he lost that he quit the company. As Wade Keller in the Pro Wrestling Torch has often argued, Styles should have been a Peter Parker type character. He€™s quiet, unassuming and honest. But when he gets in the ring? He€™s a superhero. Unfortunately, TNA messed up that simple formula, and tried to take his character in directions he wasn€™t suited for. Instead of building the company around him, they continually pushed him aside. A phenomenal error on their part.