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NXT still needs outside talent...

3K views 33 replies 19 participants last post by  RomanDeanRollins 
#1 ·
I don't care how many developmental stars they have on their NXT roster. The NXT Brand needs more outside names. Sami, Owens, Vaudevillains, Balor, and eventually Owens will be on the main roster. No, it won't be tomorrow or next week, but eventually those names will be on the main roster hopefully making a strong impact for the shows. The WWE needs more established talent which never made a name for themselves in the WWE.

A.J Styles

I don't care how old he is because he is far better than The Miz, New Day, Ziggler, and plenty of others. Give him 10 months in NXT and boom to the main roster. Let him establish his name in NXT and gain some attention, it's not like Styles doesn't have a following of fans online. He is a star whether Vince, HHH, or whomever else thinks otherwise. AJ Styles will put asses in seats during house shows and on Smackdown. Not just AJ Styles, but many others as well.

Samoa Joe

I have no idea if he is going to sign, or not, but he should. There time is running out. Samoa Joe is no secret to the wrestling community. He is also an established named not currently signed to the WWE. Whether it's obvious, or not Samoa Joe vs Roman Reigns better happen. Samoa Joe, Tamina, and the Usos turning on Roman Reigns would be ideal. Samoa Joe, and AJ Styles under the same roof would also be epic to see in NXT. If we got Zayn vs Owens then we need AJ vs Joe. I don't care what his weight is either because he has solidified himself as legit to me by now.

Jay Briscoe

The "The Dirty Mouth of The South" Jay Briscoe is ready for the WWE. His brother not so much. The Briscoe Brothers were awesome and I still want to see them vs The Dudleys, but I would prefer to see Jay Briscoe vs Bubbah Ray, or Bully Ray. Briscoe has all the tools to go against the grain and become a big star. His potential is unreal and he is my personal favorite right now and has been for some time. His title reign in ROH made sense and revealed his upside, or potential. The WWE needs this man and NXT should be his home.

"The Cleaner" Kenny Omega

Yes, Demott is gone. I heard he had a problem with Bill and now that he is gone I think Omega has a better chance. He found his "look, or niche" and it's working great with the Bullet Club. Going way back to his early days in the WWE he had nothing going for him in terms of character and overall look. That has all changed and this guy is definitely someone they should reconsider. Everything that he is now would work in the WWE today and fans would hardly know that he was signed years ago with the company, so his arrival could still be fresh.
 
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#3 ·
Eventually, I'm sure they will bring in other indy stars amongst their recruits. I don't think bringing in all those kind of names is the only way for WWE to be successful though. Bray Wyatt, Roman Reigns, Tyler Breeze... none of those guys were renowned on the indy scene and they all did pretty well for themselves.

I think the majority of the current NXT guys will probably be there about another 12 months. A lot can happen in that time. Samoa Joe was backstage at the NXT tapings the other night. Uhaa Nation was part of the latest class of recruits. There's no shortage of talent in NXT and WWE right now.
 
#5 · (Edited)
The names you list are too established n my opinion.

Think how well they have done with Seth who had made his name on the indies but was still early in his career. Guys who could still improve significantly, Joe and Styles have definitely peaked already and there is no real upside.

Basically, Adam Cole would be a better pick up than any of these.
 
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#7 ·
If Joe and Styles were recruited, I reckon that would be too far even for the NXT audience. The line that NXT is full of hungry youngsters looking to make their break would become unbelievable. It stretches credibility with Itami and Balor but they were working in a different country and relatively unknown so it just works. Not with Joe and Styles though. Too well known and in the twilight of their careers. They could be good for cameos but that's about it

They need guys still moving up in their careers. Cole has to be the number 1 target if they need more. Briscos would be awesome.
 
#8 ·
Everyone knows that if NXT becomes a touring show just like Raw and SD, they would need "big" names once the current top stars debut on the main roster to compete against shows like ROH, Lucha Underground and TNA, but AJ Styles and Kenny Omega are pipe dreams at this point and Samoa Joe is likely already signed.

Jay Briscoe, Adam Cole, Alex Shelley or Ricochet are the best options IMO, but Jay already signed a 2 year extension with ROH and i highly doubt WWE buys him out of his contract, Ricochet also signed a long term contract with LU last time i heard and Shelley is way too settled on Japan to move. The only real option is Adam Cole but ROH could still do the same thing with him the same way they did with the Briscoes once the NXT rumors started to gain some steam.
 
#9 ·
They have plenty of talent. They can go grab established veteran talent or utilize one of the main roster talents if needed. There's always going to be a few talents that were sign and built from the ground up that are willing and ready (EXCEPT FOR DANA BROOKE) to debut on the show.

I think one of the reasons HHH signed so much indy talent, was to launch the NXT brand since it was going to be on a televised platform every week. With Owens, Zayn, Balor, Itami and Breeze able to carry the brand to start out, they don't have to rush all these ex Football players and body builders that need a lot more training and time to develop before they're even ready to be on NXT. Hell it took Solomon Crowe over a year to get on TV. They are not short on talent at all. I'll bet there's about couple dozen pieces of talent who think they're ready to go right now, just no spots available.
 
#10 ·
It's hilarious to know that people think Styles or Samoa Joe are done, or have peaked. This is professional wrestling folks, these men wrestle well into their mid 40's now. AJ Styles is in great shape and at best is more legit than most of the mid card currently in the WWE. Samoa Joe is already signed so that should tell you something.
 
#12 ·
AJ is 37 and has never been a good mic worker, they turned him heel and gave him Flair to add some personality but it still wasn't there. AJ has plenty of great matches in him but from a mic and character standpoint, he has peaked. AJ today is AJ 5 years ago who in turn is AJ in 5 years time.

Joe is a far better talent than AJ but had a clear peak 7 or so years ago and since than has mainly been on the decline. To say that Joe last year was as good Joe in 2006-8 would be a flat out lie.
 
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#13 ·
AJ Styles is almost 38 and is making a killing as is . He doesn't need to be in NXT or with the WWE

Samoa Joe might have already signed with the WWE so you may be happy

Jay Briscoe signed a 2 year deal with ROH so he wont be in NXT any time soon

Kenny Omega relocated to Japan so he can wrestle over there and is a big fan of the culture even learning the language. He signed a full time deal(if I recall correctly) with NJPW in November , he also doesn't need the WWE

NXT will have to bring in some names but not for a while plus they just recently brought in fresh faces anyways. There is plenty of time for the WWE to raid the indies and bring in young talent like Adam Cole
 
#15 ·
WWE doesn't want or need Aj Styles. After WWE signed Neville, a 38 year old Aj styles didn't have much to offer to them anymore. I know Aj Styles has a lot of fans on this forum but let's be realistic, Aj may be a better wrestler than most(if not all) of the guys in WWE but he couldn't cut a promo to save his life. Stick with NJPW and be happy for him.

Samoa Joe, looks like he's in talks to go to WWE/NXT, but someone might tell him he's too fat and a deal can fall through that easily. So I'll believe him going to WWE when I see it.

Jay Briscoe seems happy in ROH and more power to him.

Kenny Omega could be a cool signing for WWE. Much like Finn Balor, Omega has respect on the indies but he's not that famous of a star that it would be insulting for him to restart his career and change his name.

I like when WWE signs these indie darlings but I think it's far more important to create their own stars and see if the performance center can actually develop legitimate stars of the future. The track record for creating new stars from scratch is pretty bad.
 
#16 ·
I don't know if the WWE needs Styles, or AJ wants to be in NXT. That isn't the point. If NXT starts touring the stars that are names now need to be replaced. You aren't going to replace them with "Developmental" talent. Learning the business doesn't happen in two years. Once NXT is touring without Owens, Balor, Itami, Zayn, and others, then what? They have to branch out and get talent that is marketable.

AJ Styles just isn't a better wrestler than most of the WWE's mid card, but he is also much more marketable. Blame the WWE for not having him right now because they offered a low ball deal as if he were a nobody. Can you blame AJ Styles if that were the case? Styles is well known all over the United States Wrestling fans, and that includes WWE fans. NXT is located in Florida. Have you any clue how big Styles is in Florida? Jeff Hardy sucked on the mic and quite frankly so does Orton and John Cena. However, their merchandising sales have all done well while employed by the WWE. You, like others clearly are missing that AJ Styles is a draw and is very marketable.
 
#18 ·
AJ Styles would be insane to sign with WWE.


According to F4W, the developmental deal they offered him was $65k guaranteed, which essentially was comparable to not making him an offer at all given what he was making in TNA and the demand for him as a freelancer.


In his own words, AJ cleared close to mid six figures in 2014. And a guy like him most likely gets all his transportation and hotel paid each time.

Dude is living the good life. Unless WWE's guarantee is six figures, there is no reason for him as a family man pushing 40 to relocate to Orlando and do hindu squats for Albert.
 
#21 ·
Rather they make a play for Okada seeing as he is under 30 and over 6 ft, plus there's just something about him that screams "star".

But imo NXT needs more established veterans who can teach the new guys how to work, you can't learn by working with people experience, I know "iron sharpens iron" but you still need to finish that sword.
 
#26 ·
I don't see what is in it for either Styles or WWE. Styles is at a stage where he needs to maximise earnings/quality of life. Why would he move, take an earning hit at NXT and be owned by WWE when NXT's record of transition to main roster has not been great and the chances of injury are getting greater. He doesn't offer anything to WWE beyond what they already have. And he is just too established to fit in with NXT's brand
 
#34 ·
Its funny how the wrestling business work.IDK ya,I wouldn't doubt an AJ Styles/WWE relationship at all,especially with 2 things going.Number 1,Samoa Joe is about to sign with WWE and is 36 and can work pretty good.Number 2,He is a TNA star getting a chance.Its almost as if TripleH is testing to see how a TNA star will get over with the crowd.Another thing that can and will also benefit a AJ Styles-WWE relationship is that if Samoa Joe is successful in his NXT run,there's no shadow of a doubt that TripleH will look at AJ's way seeing that he needs more big names out there to help his NXT brand seeing that those big names (Balor,Itami,Zayn, and including owens) will not be down there forever,including Joe.So who do you think he's going to look for to help keep the NXT brand for a very brief period of time? Who out there but the biggest name out there and that name is AJ Styles.I hear shoot interviews where even AJ said that he would go to WWE if the right deal is good.Even though he says that New Japan is so good and so on and so forth,he also says that he would absolutely go to WWE.So it looks like everything AJ is saying about New Japan is only just hyping the promotion cause hes there at the moment and his contract expires in a few months.I know about the suppose "Low Ball Offer" WWE apparently gave AJ,but this was at the time before TripleH decided to go after Samoa Joe.I also remember when Samoa Joe was a free agent before,WWE had no interest,butit looks like we're starting to see a change of the guard with TripleH and NXT.He knows that he needs that big name outside talent to keep NXT flowing in a big way and keep that buzz out there.I can definitely seeing him and AJ work something out that makes both of them happen on a deal getting AJ Styles not only in NXT,but to the main roster at some point
 
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