Pros & Cons of a Money In The Bank Cash-In at WWE WrestleMania 31

In the ten year history of WWE’s Money In The Bank briefcase, no one has ever cashed in at WrestleMania. 411’s Greg DeMarco analyzes the pros and cons of a potential cash in at this year’s springtime spectacle in his first DeMarcoMania installment.

Greg DeMarco is a wrestling fan of over 31 years, dating back to less than 6 months before the first WrestleMania. I’ve watched every WrestleMania live and attended one in person. I’ve suffered and cheered, been shocked and amazed. Basically, I’ve grown up with WrestleMania.

I’m excited to lend that perspective to this very special preview series for WrestleMania 31. From my analysis of the Money In The Bank Cash-In to my B.O.L.D. Predictions, you’ll be more than prepared for Sports Entertainment’s Grandest Stage after my preview.

Welcome to my world. Welcome…to DeMarcoMania.

In 2005, Chris Jericho pitched an idea to Eric Bischoff that has created some of professional wrestling’s most memorable moments. It was Jericho’s invention that gave us world champions like Edge, Rob Van Dam, CM Punk, Jack Swagger and The Miz.

Thanks to Chris Jericho, Money In The Bank was born. And in one of the most overused clichés ever…the rest truly is history.

In 2014 Seth Rollins, the Architect of The Shield, became the man who destroyed The Shield. Rollins would later go on to win the Money In The Bank Ladder Match, and the contract that comes along with it. While the cash-in has been teased, Seth Rollins still holds the briefcase as we head down the Road To WrestleMania 31.

Should Rollins cash in during the Santa Clara event? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of it all…

PRO: It’s Never Been Done Before

Very few things haven’t done in the world of professional wrestling, even when it comes to WrestleMania. The Undertaker suffered his first ‘Mania loss to Brock Lesnar last year, ending his legendary Streak in the process. Triple H and The Miz both entered and left as heel champions. Steve Austin turned face, and heel, in major WrestleMania matches.

But no man has ever cashed in the Money In The Bank briefcase at WrestleMania. Mr. Anderson and Daniel Bryan both called it, but neither made it to WrestleMania with the contract. In fact, only Dolph Ziggler made it that far, and he waited one additional day before carving out his own little corner of wrestling history.

And now we approach the eleventh WrestleMania of the “Money In The Bank” era, and Seth Rollins can do what has never been done before…cash in the Money In The Bank briefcase at WrestleMania.

CON: It’s Already Been Teased

The Road To WrestleMania can, at times, morph into a very promo heavy ride. 2015 has been no exception, and a few of those promos have teased a potential Seth Rollins cash in. In fact, WrestleMania main eventer Roman Reigns basically challenged Rollins to call his shot and add himself to the main event, a suggestion Rollins “politely” declined.

Which brings us to our first Con: the element of surprise is gone.

Obviously we wouldn’t forget that Rollins has the briefcase, but that doesn’t mean it has to be front and center. I wanted Dolph Ziggler to cash in at WrestleMania 29, so much so that I suggested they don’t book Ziggler in a match, rather advertise him in the vein of “What Will Ziggler Do at WrestleMania?” I’ve even suggested the same for Rollins, including making him the special guest referee for Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar.

Thanks to the past few episodes of Monday Night Raw, Rollins’ match is now set as the obvious showdown with Randy Orton. But that doesn’t preclude him from cashing in. It actually makes it better.

But we’ll get to that point soon enough. For now let’s just remember our first con, the fact that the first ever WrestleMania cash in has already been teased.

PRO: It Builds For The Dog Days Of Summer

The months after WrestleMania can be rough. Last year we got Daniel Bryan vs. Kane and the continuation of John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt. If not for The Shield feuding with Evolution, it would have been a rough few months post-Mania.

A Seth Rollins cash-in changes all of that.

Extreme Rules becomes less Backlash and more of a starting point. You put Randy Orton over Seth Rollins in the WrestleMania opener and have Rollins standing tall as WWE World Heavyweight Champion to close the show—in a moment much like WrestleMania X where Owen Hart defeated Bret Hart to open the show and Hart closed the event as champ.

Now you have built in stories for Rollins. Rollins vs. Reigns is easy and obvious, and you can add-in Rollins vs. Orton. You also have Rollins vs. Reigns vs. Orton.

Now, I will give you that Rollins’ continual threat to cash-in could be the story post-Mania…it’s a point that brings us to the next con in our analysis.

CON: It Rushes The Cash-In Storyline

I already discussed the downtime after WrestleMania and how the cash-in can combat that. But keeping the briefcase alive accomplishes the same thing in a different way.

If Reigns leaves WrestleMania as the champion, it’s highly likely that Brock Lesnar isn’t around for a rematch. You then have built in challengers in Randy Orton, Daniel Bryan (if he doesn’t win the Intercontinental Championship) and Seth Rollins. You also have Rollins’ briefcase, which moves to the forefront.

Will he cash in at Extreme Rules? What about after? Will be push it to the limits of expiration as we approach Money In The Bank?

It’s a very easy story to tell for a creative team that has shown they struggle with telling stories. Cashing in at WrestleMania takes away that creative option.

PRO: It Sends The Fans Home Happy

Look, it’s irresponsible of me as a journalist to ignore the fact that Roman Reigns’ victory over Brock Lesnar will not be well received at WrestleMania 31. Did you hear the reaction Brock received at the Royal Rumble?

Yeah…

Seth Rollins cashing in on Reigns will pop the crowd big time, far more than Reigns beating Lesnar. There’s no denying that, and the WWE knows it. In fact, they’ve already preparing for it.

The company long ignored the fans’ reaction to John Cena outside of “bizarro world” cities, until finally cashing in on the “Let’s Go Cena! Cena Sucks!” chants years later. They learned from that mistake and are already making it part of Reigns’ character. People love to hate John Cena, and they’re already loving hating Roman Reigns. A Seth Rollins cash in gives you what you need in a WrestleMania ending from the crowd’s perspective.

CON: It Robs Roman Reigns Of His WrestleMania Moment

The story, dating back to SummerSlam, has been the rise of Roman Reigns. In fact, you can trace it back to Royal Rumble 2014 when Roman Reigns finished as the runner-up to Batista. Reigns later got a victory over Randy Orton at SummerSlam, and defeated Seth Rollins on the Raw leading up to Night of Champions (the card Roman had to be removed from due to injury).

Fast forward to the Royal Rumble, where Reigns came out victorious over 29 other WWE Superstars. He was put in a position to defend his WrestleMania main event, and did so successfully against Seth Rollins on Raw and Daniel Bryan in the WWE Fastlane main event.

Since then the build has focused on people telling Roman Reigns he can’t win. And Roman obviously disagrees. So much that he now has an “I Can. I Will.” t-shirt that you can likely purchase at WWE Shop.

This makes it very easy to argue that it would be pointless to have him drop the title 5-minutes after overcoming these odds and proving the naysayers wrong. Let Roman Reigns have the moment he deserves and don’t make a joke out of his first ever title reign.

PRO: It Robs Roman Reigns Of His WrestleMania Moment

Yes, the same thing…

The same thing but with a very different meaning. Roman Reigns can, and will, overcome the odds to defeat Brock Lesnar and capture his first WWE World Heavyweight Championship. He will stand on the ropes and celebrate…

…and when he comes down Seth Rollins will be right there to waffle him in the face with his gold Money In The Bank briefcase.

You see as the WWE has been building Roman Reigns since last summer, they have also been building Seth Rollins. The build of Seth Rollins has been a little more subtle (but just a little) but it’s kicked into high gear since Rollins manipulated (and threatened to kill) Edge to get John Cena to bring The Authority back.

So while Roman Reigns has become the next John Cena, Seth Rollins has become the company’s next great heel. And you can’t have the next John Cena without the next great heel.

WrestleMania 30 paid off an 8-month storyline for Daniel Bryan and The Authority, and WrestleMania 31 should pay off the near yearlong storylines for both Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns.

Roman Reigns does win, and Seth Rollins does rob Reigns of his moment. Just like he should. Rollins steals the WrestleMania spotlight from his former Shield brother and leaves as champion.

Reigns’ elevation to the top of the card is complete, as is Rollins’. WrestleMania 30 made one guy in Daniel Bryan—WrestleMania 31 makes two.

YOU DECIDE!

Weighing your own Pros and Cons, should Seth Rollins cash-in his Money In The Bank briefcase at WrestleMania 31.

Greg DeMarco is a wrestling fan of over 30 years and has also worked on the independent circuit as a promoter, announcer, character and booker. Greg a weekly contributor at 411Mania.com, applying his opinionated style to the world of pro wrestling. He began writing for 411Mania in October 2010 and has been pissing readers off ever since!

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Listen to the latest edition of The Greg DeMarco Show as Greg & Patrick O’Dowd discuss the Road To WrestleMania and are joined by Lucy Mendez and DeMarcette Allie Parker!

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