3 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (21 Aug - Results & Review)

2. Worth It For The Paul Heyman Tease

Well, well, well. Just what do we have here?

Cody Rhodes told Randy Orton that it’s inevitable he ends the ‘Legend Killer’ idea once and for all. To put a pin on that, he added: “That’s not a prediction, that’s a spoiler”. Of course, most will know that's Paul Heyman’s line, so it looks like WWE is teasing Cody linking up with Heyman in the future. Blimey, that'd be an interesting twist.

Personally, this fan isn't too sure Rhodes necessarily needs that to go heel when he could be a fine villain on his own, but it’s intriguing and was unexpected here if nothing else. GM Aldis added in the wrinkle of neither man getting a WWE Title shot again if they touch one another before Sunday Night’s Main Event on 6 September, so they could lean on the Heyman teaser heading into their grudge match instead of brawling.

So, we're about to go from awkwardly cramming Pat McAfee into the story to Paul E huh? That's one heck of an upgrade if so. Overall, this was a cool opening promo exchange that developed the story and chucked in a fascinating possibility for the final months of 2026. Will Cody actually team up with someone who tried to stop him from "finishing the story" years ago? It's a frankly bizarre thought, but a quirky one.

For his part, Orton sold the "spoiler" line like he couldn't believe Rhodes would say something like that. Echoing Heyman is not something Randy had on his bingo card, but it speaks to how far he's pushing Cody to the brink of madness.