WWE Backlash 2016: 10 Things We Learned

2. SmackDown Needs A Few More Names

bray wyatt
WWE.com

If there's one thing that Backlash made abundantly clear, it's that WWE must assess what they have at hand on SmackDown Live. Once it became obvious that Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt wasn't going to happen, an ageing veteran was tossed into the mix, simply because there wasn't really any other talent who could take his place.

That's worrying, the SmackDown ranks are eerily thin. Even before Orton vs. Wyatt bit the dust, the pay-per-view needed a few more matches upon first glance of the final proposed card. There were only six bouts advertised, and that included two tag-team matches in the same tournament.

The blue brand could really be doing with a handful of stars to help pad things out. Maybe some more NXT call ups are necessary, because things can't keep going this way. Sooner or later, WWE will run out of interesting match combinations, something that should not even be on anyone's mind mere months into the brand split.

Naturally, John Cena is posted missing right now and he's a huge loss. It doesn't stop with Cena though, SmackDown requires numbers.

Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.