The Pondering: Did WWE Rush The Shield Triple Threat?

This week, I’m less going to give a take and tell you why I think it, and more asking a question. I’ll try to look at things from both sides, and then ask you guys what you think the answer is. There’s no “right” answer here, let me just state that now. I just want everyone on the same level going in.

Since WWE announced the Triple Threat Main Event for Battleground featuring Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins colliding for the WWE Title, I’ve simply wondered if they rushed a match that quite a few people had dream booked for the WrestleMania main event. Did WWE rush in making this Shield triple threat take place?

The easiest answer here is of course not. The Shield broke up nearly two years ago, and this is their first match where it’s just the three of them going at it. We’ve seen Dean vs. Seth, Roman vs. Seth, Roman and Dean against Seth and someone, and even Roman vs. Dean, but we’ve never had all three go at it.

In that sense, WWE has done a fantastic job of constantly giving us a snack while telling us that the meal is going to take another ten minutes or so. And, of course, when we come back ten minutes later asking where the food is, we’re given another snack, and told it’s still going to take ten minutes.

This time has also allowed all three guys the time to grow and change their characters. Jokes at Roman Reigns’ possible lack of growth or change aside, all three have in fact changed since the break up. Roman Reigns, for instance, developed quite the comedic side, along with a miles long stare that you just get lost in when you look. He went from silent muscle to bragging meathead, and the company showed that they have faith in him as evidenced by his three WWE Title reigns.

Seth Rollins went from the brains of a group to a full-fledged mastermind, and enjoyed quite a WWE Title reign himself, one that was cut short by injury. His confidence both on the mic and in the ring have increased as well, at least in my perception.

Even Dean Ambrose, who has had trouble completely shedding his goofier qualities, has emerged as a legitimate main eventer. He had flirted with that spot a few times since the break up, but usually came out the loser of the feuds, keeping him in his upper mid-card spot. At WrestleMania, many of us (definitely myself included) pegged Ambrose as ready to show he belonged in his match with Brock Lesnar, but the booking killed that possibility, and a lot of people left the match with a bad taste in their mouths.

Now, however, Dean is the champion, thanks to a well-timed cash in of a Money in the Bank briefcase.

Waiting this long allowed all three guys to find their own way, and not rely so much on their prior Shield personalities, Reigns’ ring gear notwithstanding. Unlike those Shawn Michaels/Marty Jannetty matches that showed how much Michaels had grown into his HeartBreak Kid persona while Jannetty was still 100% “The Rocker,” all three can hit the ring and think about how far they’ve come since that night Seth smashed Roman and Dean with that chair.

So yeah, there’s definitely an easy argument that by waiting two years, there’s no way any one could say that WWE “rushed” this match.

Still, I’d think that the other side, those that feel this match was in fact rushed, will also have a valid point. Dean Ambrose was wrestling Chris Jericho and carrying around a house plant just weeks before he became the champion. He was one of many good choices to win the Money in the Bank briefcase, but I don’t know that I’d consider him the runaway favorite that those matches tend to have.

Those who think the match may have been rushed might point out that Reigns only lost his belt because of a Wellness violation, which put into place a series of events that may not have happened prior. Of course, maybe Dean would have just cashed in on Roman after he beat Seth at Money in the Bank, and thus not too much would have been changed. Of course, we don’t know what the plans were, so it’s all hypothetical.

What’s known is that Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins seemed to be the feud we’d deal with for a little bit. Surely, one match between the two wouldn’t settle anything, no matter how cleanly the match ended. You’d figure Seth would complain if he lost, and Roman would certainly be asking for his rematch if he had failed to defend the belt. Even if Dean remains Mr. Money in the Bank, there’s no way we’d be doing this match at Battleground, right?

Maybe at SummerSlam. Maybe. But Battleground? We don’t need to bump up the buyrates for the lesser shows anymore – they’re all $9.99! Sure, there’s no harm in bumping up a lesser card with a big match, but general WWE history shows that this isn’t usually how they operate. Something like The Shield’s first triple threat would, one would think, be reserved for a WrestleMania or a SummerSlam. You wouldn’t even want to water it down by having it at the Royal Rumble. So, yeah, that it’s taking place at Battleground just makes it feel like this is something that was put together at the last second due to circumstances.

While each guy has had time to grow, this really came together out of nowhere. Which, sure, could have been the design of the plan all along. We always ask for a shot in the arm for WWE programming, only to immediately call them out for “lack of planning” when they finally do it. Maybe Dean was kept lukewarm through the spring because they knew the summer would be his, and they didn’t want us on the trail.

But you’d think this match, a match that we’ve all literally been waiting for since that fateful night in June 2014, you’d think this match would have been built in a way that we would have seen it coming, and we’d have been chomping at the bit to see it. The way many laid it out, they were on that path anyways: Roman or Seth holds the belt, Dean holds the briefcase, Roman or Seth wins the Rumble, and Dean interjects himself into the WrestleMania Main Event. There were other variations, but that was the one I saw most often (and agreed with if it were to happen).

Allowing Dean a little time as Mr. Money in the Bank would have granted him higher level matches, along with the opportunity to hover over the champion regardless of it being Seth or Roman, all while taunting them that he was coming. People would have been excited to see Dean cash in, as well as the impending collision.

As it happened, we were instead surprised to see him cash in (and win!), and then were just sort of given a triple threat match as everyone bickered in the ring. The match is now more a matter of circumstance than it is a feud between three guys with a long history, and that’s somewhat of a letdown, all things considered.

Dean Ambrose isn’t chomping at the bit to get a little more revenge on his old rival, and he’s not begrudgingly fighting his friend for the ultimate prize; he’s instead defending against the former champion and the prior champion who has a minor qualm with how he lost the belt.

Seth isn’t looking to maintain his dominance over his former friends; he’s instead simply trying to get his belt back. Ditto Roman. It’s simply about the belt, and not at all about the history. The history is added as a supplemental reason at best that this match is happening.

And that’s why, at this point, I’m still unsure. I feel like the match feels like WWE rushed it, but I do feel that they waited a long time to have the match, and that having it on a non-major event is a nice surprise, and may bring some more eyeballs to a card that might have gone largely ignored.

What do you guys think? Was the Triple Threat for Battleground rushed? Should it have been saved for WrestleMania? Is it a big match no matter where it happens? Speak your mind in the comments!

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