12 Ups And 15 Downs For WWE In 2017 (2nd Opinion)

6. Shield 2.0

From 2012-2014, there was no more dominant force in WWE than The Shield, a trio of up-and-coming wrestlers who were smartly booked and properly protected and groomed as they rose through the ranks until they finally dissolved and all became former world champions.

Everyone knew the group would eventually reunite, but the hope was that it would come at a point where demand was at a fever pitch and the need was great.

Instead, it came midway through 2017 to counter the forces of Miz, Cesaro and Sheamus. Not to knock the three of them – they’ll actually get kudos later on – but that’s not the trio you would imagine pulling the Shield back together.

But this reunion has been snakebitten from the start. Their scheduled first major match together was altered due to Roman Reigns contracting meningitis, with Kurt Angle taking his place. Then we got the reunion match on a throwaway episode of Raw. And now Dean Ambrose is injured and could miss several months of action.

The Shield was a truly special group. The Shield 2.0 hopefully sold a lot of T-shirts, because there’s not much else positive to say about it.