I think I heard a bunch of crickets every time the NXT guy was on. Otherwise, dead on about Swagger. He went down clean to, at best, the number 3 guy on Raw right now, and he's supposed to be top guy on Smackdown?

Maryese was amusing at times. And Rosa Mendes can leave that dress on my floor any time she wants to.

It's nice to see someone get a push in the women's division on RAW. I mean I wish it was Gail Kim, but Eve isn't bad and it's nice seeing her get a push.

Jeez, it appears Jack's "Swagger" is gone. Ive noticed over the years that goofy, or arrogant characters turn very serious when a world title or big feud comes to them (Y2J-Jericho-now, for example), but that was the wrong move for Swagger. It was his cocky heel character that made him so good in ECW. Oh well, at least its a push...

Im looking forward to the Batista-Cena LMS match. i have a feeling it will be a great match, possibly topping there WM 26 match

I have a bad feeling that Raw is gonna feel the loss of HBK these next few weeks...

The only reason Ted Jr. has the million dollar belt is because Dad is too fat to buckle it! When was the last time the Miz defended the US Title? How soon before Amazing Kong joins the RAW roster? Hopefully the draft will change things for the better!

This is exactly why I am against Swagger being World Champion. Swagger has a lot of potential, however it seems WWE doesn't know what to do with him. Most of his best matches were on ECW which never got the main WWE audience interested in his character. The guy wins the MITB match at WrestleMania after being lower mid card for months. He shows up on Raw, cashes in the briefcase, takes it back after being outdone by Cena. Then he shows up on Smackdown, gets a weak victory over Jericho to become champion on a show that his character hasn't really been introduced to. To top it off ,after he wins, his character has suddenly changed and he arrives on Raw to be greeted by Cena who tells him he isn't "championship material". Then he takes a clean loss to Orton. I'm not sure how he can go back to Smackdown and be taken seriously.

Unless his "gimmick" will be a champion that always skims by keeping the belt in title matches but never wins clean, I see this going nowhere. Actually, I see it going nowhere.... A champion should seem unbeatable. At Swagger's size that shouldn't be hard to pull off.

Michaels, Hogan, Flair, Hart, Austin, Undertaker, HHH, and most other successful champions never had their first title reign start without a story line buildup and by looking weak a week after winning the title. It wasn't even like Swagger had a brutal match to win the belt, he only used his finisher on a hurt opponent. I don't see this as Swagger not being ready to be champion as much as I don't think the writers are ready to handle the next generation of champions.

to me swagger looks like a nervous boy who doesn't know how to handle the predicament he's fallen into

Prediction: Orton gets drafted to Smackdown and feuds with Swagger.

Simmer down now.

Let's not fear that the worst is yet to come for Jack Swagger's brand new title run just yet.

Randy Orton is white hot right now (I'm talkin Austin-hot), and I have no problem with him going over anybody, champ or no champ. That match wasn't for the World Title. Swagger didn't get buried by Santino Marella in a filler segment this time. That match was designed to do the exact opposite of what many hastily assumed it already did: It was designed to acclimate Jack Swagger into the main event picture with a competitive main event spot against one of the businesses best. No more, no less.

This reminds me of when The consummate underdog New Orleans Saints lost to the always prestigious Dallas Cowboys, before the 2010 playoffs even began, and many wrote off The Saints as 'pretenders'. Anybody mind refreshing my memory as to what went on to happen with that story?

I'm not saying that Swagger will go on to be a world beater, but I also refuse to believe that a couple losses, to a superstar who is higher on the totem pole, is a nail in the coffin of Jack Swagger.

Simmer down now.

This is a young, green champion and in a business where wins and losses are predetermined (although they do matter) and a business where the young guns are held in check, as far as getting too big for their britches, I think Swagger can overcome a couple main event pinfall losses to a multi-time heavyweight champion of Randy Orton's stature.

And what's with people getting bent out of shape whenever wrestlers tell each other they are not in one another's league, or that a given superstar "isn't championship material"? This is PRO WRESTLING! Not a Tiger Woods manufactured press conference where everybody has to play nice. The last time I checked, trashtalking goes hand in hand with any feud no matter how much art is imitating life.

So simmer down now. At least Swagger's title was protected to some degree. I mean, can you imagine if the WWE did something foolish like have it change hands in a box? *ahem*

RESPONSE FROM KE: The problem is, perception is everything. When the top babyface says a guy isn't championship material, it means something. And then he is proven right. People already don't take Swagger seriously, so instead of trying to change their minds, WWE reinforces it. As far as the young guys being held in check, then why put the belt on him now? WWE should wait until they feel he has dues if that's their way. The thing is, if you feel you can make money with a guy, you pull the trigger. It's not one size fits all booking. Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar and Goldberg were all shot to the top in their rookie years.

No, Swagger should have won. If he's the champ now, then he's got to be the one that's put over. Period. Realistically, they never should have booked the match, because Orton's face turn is too fresh to have him loose momentum in a loss. But the WWE is already making the same mistake with Swagger that they did with Shemus in making him appear to not be in the same class as the "real" main eventers, and thus not worthy of being taken seriously as a champion.

Also, I thought for sure that Batista was going to say he was cashing in his rematch clause right there. When he didn't, it seemed kind of dumb. I mean, he's obviously got the guest GM on his side. Why not have Otunga make a match right there, with Cena knocked out? At least the tag champs looked good. You just know, if this was JeriShow, Jericho would have somehow ended up taking the pinfall.

Maryse has the making of a female Mr. Blackwell. Her English is actually quite beautiful.

Kofi Kingston's career hasn't been the same since Sheamus threw him over the top rope in that Battle Royale that gave Sheamus his title shot at Cena. Their careers have diverged ever since.
One wonders if Kofi got on VKM's bad side.

You could see Otunga turning on Cena coming down Sixth Avenue. So what's his motivation? Well, when you've visited President Obama at the White House twice being tag champs with Cena is a step down. He thinks he's better than Cena. .

Come to think of it Otunga offering to tag with Cena was like Obama offering to meet with the Republicans on health care. Once the Republicans offered ideas on health care, Obama wouldn't take their tag and walked away. The preceding was not a political statement.

I completely disagree with you about David Otunga. I didn't buy into that cocky, arrogant front that he displayed last night. When somebody like Edge or Jericho acts like that i believe it because they really OWN the words that they're saying, where as this guy didn't. It sounded like he was reading from a script. He didn't become those words he was saying, it just seemed to forced for my liking.

Am I the only one who doesn't like Last Man Standing matches? You basically win by count out and the ref stopping the match to make the 10 count always halts the action.

Swagger definitely looked like a chump in the opening segment, but I liked his match with Orton and I think he came away from it looking good. Like it or not, Orton is the most over guy on the show right now. At least it wasn't a squash, like a match with Cena might have been.

I actually liked that Diva battle royal. I enjoyed Maryse's commentary, especially during the ring entrances. Now, am I just crazy or didn't Eve already win a title shot?

The two tag matches that main evented the show didn't make a lick of sense from a booking standpoint, but at least The Miz can now gloat that he has two victories over Cena in the same night. I hope this little fact isn't forgotten on the writers (wishful thinking, I know).

It would have been better if Kofi won (a rollup pin or something like that) and Sheamus attacked after the match. That way Sheamus gets more heat and Kofi won't be considered a jobber now.

Plus do you think Kofi is too much of a face to get over. The only wrestler I can think of as a complete face, without any heel tendencies that was over was Steamboat. That type of face doesn't work anymore, which is why Kofi's character won't be more than midcard. I don't think people would buy him as a heel.

Couldn't agree more about Swagger. He's got a deer-in-the-headlights, hand-caught-in-the-cookie-jar look on his face. The guy has a great heel persona - why are they ruining that!?

I imagine that Orton will be drafted to SD, allowing him to feud with Swagger over the belt..er, championship.

can't agree more. Swagger's smile and more energetic entrance should not have been taken away..it should have been even more energetic since he's now champ. Completely wrong move to have him look like a loser on his first Raw as champ

I love the money in the bank match concept, but like so many other things they've watered it down way too much. the orignal six man format is best. 8 was pushing it, 10 was just too much.

With the exception of RVD, all have cashed it in after the champ has been beaten down. I'd really like to see the next winner cash it in at a PPV, and if it's a heel - perhaps interupting the intended challenger's entrance. MITB should create a new superstar - not just an excuse to put the belt on someone new for a while.

WWE should focus on creating 5 or 6 new top guys. It's good that there are several credible title holders now, unlike the Hogan days, but it's obvious the next SSCA or Rock is not coming any time soon - at least not with the format of giving scripts for promos. Promos are best done from the heart - not from the script of some lame writer from LA who never watched wrestling until hired by WWE.

The best promos have always been delivered by guys who make up their own stuff - Stone Cold, Rock, HBK, Jericho, etc. I know WWE wants family friendly and so do I - but they need to balance giving the guys some room to make up stuff while having their "no go zones" such as cursing

i was liking swagger until cena came out.. cena kinda ruined that segment.

Why do people keep comparing Randy Orton to Steve Austin?

Give me a break.

The WWE has champions, but the goal is to make Cena, Orton, Taker, and Batista the only people that really matter. They can put the World or WWE title on Santino for all it matters. Cena or one of the others will still beat whoever is champion with no effort. It doesn't matter, just as Raw will probably never really matter again. Inconsequential rubbish.

It should also be noted that Sheamus was losing to HHH or Cena in the dark matches every week that he was champion. Yes, I know they want the fans to leave excited, but it sends the wrong message having your champion look like a weakling, whether its on TV, at a house show, or in a dark match.

Swagger is the man and should be an arrogant bully. He has the skill to back it up.

Prediction: Orton gets drafted to Smackdown and feuds with Swagger.

Posted by: Cliff |
---Cliff, you stole my thunder. Exactly what I'm expecting.

Looked to me more like Orton teased the RKO on Cena to catch Swagger off-guard. Maybe I'm wrong, but I didn't think Cena blocked it as much as Orton just faked doing it. It seemed like he looked at Cena with a little smirk after dropping Swagger.

There are a ton of points to debate, I've just got to say that the comment of the week needs to include ALicia Fox, a DVR in slow-mo, and a big screen.

In a shocking blow to WWE's strict PG policy, Alicia Fox lets the cat out of the bag.

Big ups on an old-school, rock-em sock-em evening gown-esque Divas match.

I have already said I think putting the belt on Swagger was silly. I am fed up with Jericho getting these short runs with the belt when he is one of the few who can carry the belt convincingly without becoming stale.

Jericho is at the stage of his career where he needs to be greedy with his spots at the top. He has jobbed to almost everyone and has paid his dues and then some. He needs and deserves a LONG run with the belt, in the way that guys like Austin, Triple H and The Rock held onto it whilst heels.

Make the fans despise the fact that the faces cannot beat the cocky champion, when they finally do the face gets over big time. As it stands, Swagger will lose the belt likely within a few months, and the drop to him by Jericho will have been for nothing. How the best in the business can be nothing more than a transitional champ is beyond me.

Swagger sweating and Cena pointing it out really made Swagger look like an idiot.

On the Orton ‘face’ turn, Orton needs a face turn like Batista needs a few more hours in the gym! Orton is a very convincing heel, very different to almost every other heel in the past 20 years except Jake The Snake Roberts. His slow and calculating mannerisms are that of a true assassin. I know he is becoming a tweener, but they should just let him continue what he was doing.

Jake Roberts never changed his style or his methods whether he was face or heel, and Orton should do the same. I’ve a feeling they are gonna try and change him to be more fan friendly, rather than let the fans naturally gravitate towards him. The weak attempt at an RKO on Cena was proof they are changing him. A tweener should favour no one, attacking heel and face alike.

why jericho has to face edge to crowned the new no.1 contender? Wasn't he has a rematch clause?

the king of kings is better

You are spot on about Swagger, Kevin. The way WWE is treating the WWE and World Heavyweight titles isn't good. The belts change hands so often they lose their prestige and the Champions come across as weak as the lose so often.
Also, what is the point of the draft. I too used to look forward to it but now the Superstars just appear on both shows whenever they want and so a draft is pretty much pointless.

This whole episode of Raw was pretty backward. I really don't know why WWE has made Swagger look like this, mere days after he won the world title. The sad thing is though, I could kind of see it coming. During his match with Orton I could just sense that Swagger would be on losing end despite putting up a valiant effort. WWE has a huge chance here to make a star out of Swagger, but at the moment they're just throwing the opportunity away for absolutely no reason. Hopefully when he returns to Smackdown full time, Swagger will become the dominant champion he so rightly deserves to be.

The fact that Cena wanted to win the tag titles so badly with anyone also didn't make sense. It was just silly to have him look so upset and disappointed when Batista abandoned him during the first match. Come to think of it, out of all the immense talent and experience on this show, only one guy was made to look like a real star - NXT Rookie David Otunga. He handled himself very well on the mic and he certainly got a lot of heat when he too abandoned Cena in the second tag team title match of the night. It'll be interesting to see how Otunga is booked in the coming weeks on NXT.

So it seems pretty obvious that Triple H and Sheamus will indeed be facing each other again at Extreme Rules, with the stipulation probably being that Hunter is allowed to use his sledge hammer and Sheamus is allowed to bring his little steel pipe along. Yawn.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that Jerry Lawler said that David Hasslehoff is "the most popular man in all of the United Kingdom". Being from the U.K, I'm really not so sure about that one. I do like The Hoff, but I could think of at least thirty people I like better. Still though, his guest hosting of Raw next week from London should make for an entertaining night, at least more so than some random American baseball/football player.

I didn't knew I would say this but now that the only attraction in monday night raw has left the building, I don't see myself watching RAW for quite some time. Maybe Jericho being drafted to RAW will tempt me to watch it. As of now, Goodbye monday night raw. And TNA can also go to hell.

Otunga is painful on the mic. What about him says that he's ready for primetime other than a chiseled body and a famous girlfriend? The haircut is terrible, btw, and when compared to other guys who play an arrogant heel, he can't hack it just yet.

Swagger seems like the perfect guy to have managed by a Rick Rude or Bobby Heenan. That way when they change him from grinning jerk to serious suit and tie champion, the manager could still get him heat and play up his strengths. But alas, those days are over.

Since the Road to Wrestlemania, the new generation are completely wasted by the WWE. Sheamus (not so much I agree), Kofi, McIntyre (complete sqauash matches especially against Taker), Swagger (you said all the points), Morrison and R-Truth (disappointing WM match), Evan Bourne (the Shooting Star in the MITB match should have been more spectacular), DiBiase and Rhodes (demolished by Orton at WM), Primo (where is he?)...
At WM, they all could have proven their points but apart Swagger - who despite winning is being a chump - they are under-utilized. It is time for the New Generation to rise with HHH and Taker getting older, HBK retired, Mysterio and Batista possibly soon being retired. Cena, Orton, Edge and Jericho need help to raise the shows' level.

Do you think Otunga is getting a big push because he's married to Jennifer Hudson?

RESPONSE FROM KE: I think that's a big part of it.

I agree 100% about Swagger. Changing his personality is one thing but having him lose to Orton clean doesn't make a bit of since. This kind of reminds me of the way they took the life out of MVP's character. I thought Otunga did a good job as guest host. He's got skills and I think the WWE wants to maximize his Hollywood connection. The Miz has improved but he's still an instant channel changer for me

I don't have a problem with how Swagger is being handled.

After all, he was a featured performer in the ring with the established stars on Raw and held his own for teh most part. That's a big step forward from how he was presented prior. I would not be smiling if I were heading into the ring with Orton with a title belt in my possession either.

You have to remember that these guys are likely in it for the long haul with WWE, so whatever happens at any particular time is not all that consequential and can be easily changed as desired. Its just like a soap opera. some things stay the same but there are always twists and turns along the way...

While HHH pulling out his sledgehammer on Sheamus was about as unexpected as a belch after guzzling a six-pack, didn't you just love his parting shot, "Leave it to an Irishman to bring a pipe to a sledgehammer fight." I thought you had to watch "All in the Family" reruns to come across that kind of old-school, ethnic humor.

I tend to disagree on the whole aspect of Swagger making to look like a chump. Yes, the opening segment looked brash, but his main even style match with Randy Orton was very well done. This seems to be setting up a Smackdown feud between Orton and Swagger that probably runs most of the summer much like the Punk/Hardy program of last summer. Basically Orton is now a tweener a la Stone Cold, The Rock, and Triple H. He will chase Swagger all summer and then beat him for the title. These early wins get him momentum, but once he is drafted to Smackdown (which I believe will probably happen) then Swagger will start getting the best of him in typical heelish fashion.

Kofi, I think, is the victim of the ole "Let's give him the spotlight to see how he performs and then take it away for awhile to see if his mindset and dedication changes." That is the only conclusion I can come up with because the man had a very good program with Randy Orton, cut some good promos, got a lot of airtime, and held his own. I think before long you are going to see him get into another program with a top heel and then get put over.

And to close my comment, I want to go back to my point about Swagger. If he is being made to look like a chump, then so is Cena. How many Batista bombs has he taken in the last two months now? How many wins does he have on live WWE TV since just before the Royal Rumble? And how many times in recent months has he been laid out by a hook from the Big Show? (who you would think would be in line for a title shot now). I know the difference is Cena is established and Swagger is not, but you don't make any of your champions look like chumps for more than one occasional occurrence at a time and you give the champ some one-ups on his main opponent every now and then. Aside from his win over him at Wrestlemania and a few punches, Cena has not had much offense against Batista. WWE seems to do this to its Champions - they did it to Orton, Edge, Punk, Hardy, and Jericho too. So what they are doing with Swagger is no different and in their eyes not making him look like a chump.

I'm looking forward to a possible WM27 maint-event between Randy Orton and John Cena with both being babyface. The lead-up to that could be electrifying if the WWE solidifies Orton as a babyface. Speaking of Orton turning face, I guess sending Orton to Smackdown to start a program with Jericho would the greatest move the WWE could make to ensure his sucess as a cocky face. He and Jericho can cut unbelievable face vs heel promos.

See, I was really curious who was going to fill in for Shawn Michaels and beat the latest RAW Superstar to win the World Heavyweight championship before his transition to Smackdown! was complete.

It was Randy Orton.

Was there any doubt that Eve would win

Not after Maryse said, doing commentary as Eve walked down the aisle, "Here comes the worst of the night..." She wasn't bad on the mic but somebody tell her next time not to crack out of turn.

Both Swagger and Dolph Ziggler have the same problem: WWE isn't letting them be themselves. It's what Stone Cold always said, it's what Shawn Michaels said...to be a star, you have to be yourself, albeit an amped-up version. Ziggler could be awesome, but he needs a reboot. (See, "The Ringmaster.") Ditto Swagger.

Though I am not a particularly big fan of Sheamus, I am impressed by how WWE has handled his push so far. Sure, he got the title too soon, but he was booked to look credible against John Cena and now he is booked as a very credible threat to HHH. At this point, I care about Sheamus.

Sadly, WWE has not followed this example with Jack Swagger. The World Champion should NEVER get pinned clean in the middle of the ring less than a week after winning the title. It does not do ANYONE any good.

A lot of the comments I am reading suggest that it wouldn't be plausible for Swagger to start beating main eventers. I think that is flat wrong. Pushes have to start somewhere, and most successful ones involve some surprising wins early on.

I'm genuinely disappointed in the way WWE has handled Swagger, Kingston, Dibiase, and MVP. Amazingly, the way Sheamus has been booked gives me hope that WWE still knows how to create stars.

I agree with Stephen, Ziggler could be aweome. Whenever I'm impressed by a heel for his charisma and dynamic style I always want them to turn face. I think he should turn and team up with John Morrison . I reckon the result would be worth watching. The WWE writers however rarely seem to give me what I would like to see.

I think that randy orton is making swagger look unimpressive because there is a possiblity orton may go to smackdown in the draft, with a rivarly between the two slowly being cemented. It is the only thing that gives orton any reason to beat swagger two weeks in a row.

Hey Kev, just wondering what you thought of Ted DiBiase's comments about being the fortunate son? Because i know that DiBiase's brother is with one of WWE's teritories (FCW i think), and i think it'll be interesting to see if he keeps making comments about being the fortunate son. perhaps lead to the arrival of his brother in WWE. if i remember correctly, i think you had him down as one of your predictions as a rookie on NXT. so yeah, will be interesting to see what happens.

Otunga's motivation for turning on Cena: Quid pro quo with The Miz for the next pro's poll.

some of you are too horny for anything blonde, I couldn't understand a damn thing Maryse was saying. I know she gives you good feelings, "down there" but she, if not for her character, would be absolutely terrible and as about as useless as the other ones out there

I feel terrible for even having this view, but i really cannot see Jack Swagger truly getting over as a strong heel with his lisp.

In everyday life it wouldn't be an issue but when you're on tv and trying to cut an intense heat drawing promo, a lisp is a huge impediment.

As for his demeanour, it's obviously a misguided attempt from those on high to make him seem like a real man, like a legitimate, serious contender when in reality he's a fresh-faced, handsome young guy who looks misplaced when in the ring with main eventers.

He's a good worker with great athleticism and an excellent look so i hope he gets over and is accepted as a main eventer but he's got a lot to overcome.

Loco, you are totally right about Last Man Standing matches! The only time they're any fun is in video games.

The rules impede the action, plus the name is a complete misnomer. If the match were truly to determine the "last man standing," then the referee shouldn't count when both men are down. Recently all we've seen is these matches determine who is the "First Man Back Up."