8 WWE Stars Sacrificed To Make Roman Reigns Look Strong
5. Daniel Bryan
The biggest problem with Roman Reigns initially wasn't how strong he did or did not look, it was the fact he wasn't Daniel Bryan. The WWE Universe desperately wanted their hero to return, to reclaim what he never lost (the WWE Championship) and lead them all in thrusting their arms to the sky whilst shouting one of the first words they learned as a child.
Now, because the WWE creative team often lapses into childish logic, they figured that if Reigns could beat Bryan clean as a whistle the crowd might accept him. Heck, what if Bryan himself came out and endorsed Reigns after the match? Well, the audience weren't buying it at all. Bryan looked like something approaching a fool, and Reigns gained a whole hunk of nothing.
WWE tried this transfer of acceptance thing following Reigns' Royal Rumble win in 2015, yet only succeeded in getting a crowd to boo The Rock. Impressive.