7 Ups & 7 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (10 Jan)

6. Philly References Galore

If you live a good distance outside Philadelphia, then a lot of the chatter on Raw might have gone over your head. But if you grew up a half-hour away like this writer, Raw was chock-full of local flavor.

For whatever reason, the writers went into overdrive dropping Philly-specific comments into promos, weaving sports and geographic references into nearly every segment Monday night. Sure, it was probably designed to pop the crowd and keep them into it – and it somewhat worked.

If you’re keeping score… Broad Street is a main thoroughfare leading from the sports complex to City Hall. Gritty is the NHL Flyers’ insane mascot. The Broad Street Bullies is a reference to the bruising Flyers of the 70s. Walt Whitman Bridge is one of the better-known structures over the Delaware River. Cheesesteaks are a Philly “delicacy,” with Pat’s and Geno’s among the most well-known spots. Rocky should be self-explanatory to any sports fan. Ben Simmons is a disappointing basketball player who says he’s not mentally prepared to play and has sat out all season.

And yes, Philly fans once booed Santa Claus… but so have crowds in plenty of other cities. Philadelphia just gets hit with it constantly because haters can’t help but knock a passionate fanbase down whenever possible. It’s lazy aggression from lacklustre hecklers.

And this was without referencing the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross, Ben Franklin, the Phanatic, Bryce Harper, Will Smith, Billie Holiday, Bob Saget (RIP), Kobe Bryant, Joe Frazier, or Tastykakes.