What Should WWE Do With Corey Graves? | Question Of The Day
Yesterday at 03:24 AM
Welcome to another eWrestlingNews Question of the Day!
Corey Graves has been a hot topic in the past few days. For those unaware, upon Pat McAfee rejoining the commentary booth, Pat was reunited with Michael Cole and shifted over to Raw, Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett moved to SmackDown, and Corey Graves was sent to join Booker T and Vic Joseph on NXT.
Graves tweeted this out, followed by this, yet wasn’t on NXT or referenced whatsoever.
No one seems to know whether this is a work or a shoot, and in either scenario, what else is going on behind the scenes. WRKDWrestling further stirs the pot by posting about Graves being cleared to compete 3 years ago.
While we’re still going to be in the dark about this until something happens—be it Graves moving to another commentary position, leaving WWE, stepping back in the ring, transitioning to becoming a manager, or anything of the sort—we’re left to just speculate and let our thoughts run wild.
My question for you today is “Flying blind, what do you think should and/or will happen regarding Corey Graves?”
Remember to answer with your response in the comments below.
As far as my answer…
I’m hoping this isn’t a legitimate scenario where WWE actually told him he’s not famous enough for his spot and Graves is truly pissed. He’s as solid of a commentator as they’ve had for so long and is so easily slotted into random positions across the board. It wouldn’t be good for anyone for him to be in a spot where he feels crapped on, nor for WWE management to be taking someone who has been around this long and treating him like he’s their backup guy.
If that is indeed the case, then I would probably have the same line of thinking he does, and I’d be willing to bet he’s considering quitting and doing something else, but knows that he’s not going to find something that has the same pay at another smaller promotion.
Again, working under the assumption this is a legitimate gripe, I’m curious if he’s now approaching WWE and saying something like “I want to wrestle. Give me a chance. If not, I might just quit and go wrestle elsewhere.” And if that is the case and he’s truly cleared to compete, then I would certainly go down that rabbit hole and see what there is to offer as a wrestler on the indies if WWE wasn’t open to the idea.
If WWE was open to the idea of him stepping back into the ring, there isn’t a standout opponent that I would immediately jump to and say he has to face XYZ. Naturally, at this point, seeing him up against almost anyone would feel like a treat, as I didn’t even really watch his NXT career before he suffered his injuries. Be it CM Punk, Seth Rollins, LA Knight, it doesn’t matter, all of them would be something that would pique my curiosity.
I’ve wanted to see Corey step back in the ring for a quick Royal Rumble spot for years now. I figured he would be able to do that without risking too much. There are safe ways to be eliminated that don’t require him being thrown over the top rope in dangerous fashion. Imagine the pop that would happen if the fans are counting down and suddenly he comes out, ready to go, similar to how Nigel McGuinness appeared at All In and wrestled.
If all of that is off the table, though, then I frankly don’t see the reasoning for taking him off the SmackDown commentary team. Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett can handle it on their own, but if adding Corey to it keeps him on the rolodex so he can swap back into being next to Cole once McAfee leaves again, what’s the problem? It’s not like three-man teams are impossible to function.
If not that, then if I were WWE, I would probably pitch something to him along the lines of sitting at home, getting some rest, spending time with his family, and coming in to host the pre-show panels for pay-per-views. Once a month sounds like a great gig, doesn’t it? And yes, if you’re still paying him his full salary, you’re not getting as much use out of him, but WWE asks a lot of its talent and it’s not like they aren’t making record amounts of money. I’m sure one of those stupid ads plastered all over the ring apron on Raw more than makes up for any perceived losses in having him on television for however long it’ll take until McAfee is back to doing football stuff.
WWE should do what they can to retain him. Otherwise, who is going to fill in when push comes to shove? It’s not like there’s an overabundance of color commentators who are just as good or better who are just waiting in the wings. No one person is bigger than WWE, but every piece of the puzzle helps form the same picture and one missing element can ruin the whole thing.
What do you think? Drop your thoughts below!
The post What Should WWE Do With Corey Graves? | Question Of The Day appeared first on eWrestlingNews.com.
