Perhaps the one thing WWE has done nearly perfectly over the course of the last year or so is their handling of the booking of The Shield. When they were together they were booked as strongly as any unit since the nWo, and now that theyve been split all three men have been positioned excellently, involved in top storylines and matches. Theyve made no secret they view Roman Reigns as the next to be The Guy, but if SummerSlam showed us anything, its that he may not be quite ready for the spot theyre grooming him for. Reigns has the look; his Dothraki warlord appearance definitely gives him the physical traits of someone who would just as soon kick your *ss as speak to you. He also has a unique charisma that makes you feel as if youre watching a special performer. And most importantly, he has the full and total support of WWE management. But what he doesnt have, and shouldnt be expected to this early in his young career are the in-ring skills to sustain him at a main event level, and last night drew a bullseye around that fact. It doesnt help that the conspiracy theorists among us could make a case that Orton was sandbagging him a bit, purposely slowing the match down with this patented chinlocks. The main deficiency in his work is his lack of transitional moves. A wrestler doesnt have to have the repertoire of Dean Malenko to put together an effective match. Just look at The Rock. He had a handful of spots that he relied on, but everything he did in the ring was very smooth and fluid, and even the most basic of moves were executed efficiently. Now watch a Roman Reigns singles match and count the punches. In between the headbutts, clotheslines and Samoan drops and preceding the superman punch and spear, its practically all he does. He throws a hell of a working punch, or if you ask Miz a shoot punch, but his reliance on it is hindering his progression. Reigns has a tremendous future and he will be a huge star for them for years to come. But the best thing for him would be to pair him up for an extended house show run with a great worker who can give him the on-the-job training that will really help him grow. One thing's for sure: he isnt going to get any better trapped in Randy Ortons chinlock.
Brad Hamilton is a writer, musician and marketer/social media manager from Atlanta, Georgia. He's an undefeated freestyle rap battle champion, spends too little time being productive and defines himself as the literary version of Brock Lesnar.
