8 WWE Dropouts Who Revived Their Careers

While WWE is unquestionably the biggest wrestling promotion on Earth, a wrestler flopping on the grandest stage of them all doesn't have to be the career death knell that it once was. 

There are all manner of reasons someone's style, mic skills, or character may not fit the mould in a Sports Entertainment environment. Sometimes it can be as simple as bad timing, getting saddled with a terrible gimmick, or nonsensical creative direction. Whatever the reason for that failure, in the modern era, these situations can end up being a blessing in disguise.

With AEW now in the mix, NJPW always being an exciting prospect, and even TNA feeling like the hottest it's been in well over a decade, there are more avenues than ever before for talent to be able to rediscover their chutzpah. Throw GCW and all manner of other regional promotions across the globe having the platform to build legitimate superstars, plus social media's reach being greater than ever before, and being terminated by WWE can turn out to be the best thing to ever happen to a performer.

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It's a long list of superstars who have been misunderstood or mistreated by WWE in the last 15 years or so, but few can feel as hard done by as Matt Cardona. When he suffered from a lack of TV time as Zack Ryder, Cardona was way ahead of the curve when he created his incredible YouTube series, Z! True Long Island Story. With a series of promos, skits, and segments like 'Broski Of The Week', Cardona found a way to make himself popular, while also influencing the future of the business by inspiring shows like Being The Elite.

Despite rabid fan reactions and taking his shot every time he was given an opportunity, Ryder felt like he had upset the natural order of what creates a WWE superstar, and was punished by being crushed on screen. When the company eventually let him go in 2020 after 15 years of employment, it was no surprise to anyone paying attention that he would thrive.

Being comfortably the most popular wrestler on the indie circuit this decade, Cardona has created several successful gimmicks for himself and even shown range as a genuinely despicable heel. The only surprise at this point is that WWE hasn't righted their wrongs and allowed him back into the company to capitalize on his constant creativity and innovation.