This is a tough one. WWE is a big ol’ promotion with a lot of history behind it and it has a big ol’ roster with a lot potential in it.
Potential is subjective but there are plenty of people you can see on the roster and think “I can see them being a little higher or featured more” at the minimum.
It’s like the roster is just a main event machine. Also, that tempering of potential talk should take into account the build of WWE now. Someone you see as break-out main eventer could be a strong talent just below the main event or an eventual main eventer.
You know, it depends on how these rosters shake out in the next four or five years.
Does WWE Have the Juice for a Third Major Brand?
Now, those expectations could change with the implementation of a third brand. Sure, NXT is supposed to be that third brand but let’s face it: with WWE and three brands, that third position is cursed.
The third brand is never meant to be seen as level with the RAW and SmackDown. ECW was its own, subpar thing with stronger ties to SD. NXT was always treated as developmental even though it was its own thing in the most positive sense.
However, I think WWE has the overall roster and the creative for a third major brand. It would need two hours to be taken seriously and it would allow WWE to be flexible with their main event scenes.
Move one or two concrete main eventers over from each brand, take a floater from both shows, elevate them to the third brand, then distribute the rest of the roster.
If WWE would like to use the third brand as a place for those talents that just appear on TV a few times a month, that’s fine as well. The thing is to have that main event star-studded enough and to have the undercard with enough decent talent.
Opening Up the Draft and Engaging the WWE Universe
It’s not particularly interesting to get supplemental Draft updates between two shows. However, knowing that a third brand is in the mix; this spices it up a bit.
Seeing that both SmackDown and Attitude—yeah, that’s the name I’m going with for the third brand—want Alpha Academy collectively and are willing to give RAW a favorable round adds to the importance of the Draft and the value of the superstars.
I can see it eliminating free agents unless corporate enforces roster caps, makes the brands have a dedicated number of featured talent, and the rest are just (brand) free agents.
Two Reasons a Third Brand Might Not Work
Outside of not having a large enough roster—which WWE has—there are two creative reasons a third brand might fail. The first is how the Draft is presented.
I mention this because there must be some “in character” contracts to make it so that some superstars just don’t pop up in the Draft. It’s not that all main eventers are safe but they might not move during the Draft and end up moving later in the year.
Unless the third brand is presented as being on par with RAW and SmackDown, you can expect it to stay out of the Draft in general. It could take two or three years to achieve that unless it just had the most explosive first year ever.
The other thing that would kill the third brand idea is the desire to actually want that much WWE content on prime time and to write it. I believe WWE could find or reallocate the creative staff to write a third two-hour show easily.
However, you have to also factor in promoting it, branding it, implementing its stories into a PPV with a time limit on it, and writing the show so that it rivals SD and RAW while not being hour four and five of RAW or three and four of SmackDown.
It’s a bit ambitious but what do you think? Could WWE commit to a third, major brand or is the third brand always doomed to be secondary? Let us know down below!
CHECK IT OUT: To get The Overtimer’s Hottest Stories, Breaking News and Special Features in your email, CLICK HERE!
