By James Caldwell, PWTorch.com assistant editor

The ECW brand could use some new talent. Teddy Long's storyline-based "talent initiative" yielded the current ECW champion Jack Swagger straight out of WWE's developmental territory in Tampa, Fla., but the ECW brand is lacking depth, especially after the departure of Matt Hardy.

Jim Ross reports the Florida territory has some talent potentially ready for the main WWE roster, but the concern is rushing younger wrestlers onto the scene too early.

"WWE doesn't have empty cupboards when it comes to potentially, outstanding wrestlers being developed there," Ross said on jrsbarbq.com. "There is some outstanding talent there."

Ross toured the Tampa facility earlier this week while in Florida for the Super Bowl, and hopes wrestlers who are called up to the main roster are prepared to make a good first impression because WWE fans can be unforgiving.

"My biggest fear is that some of them will be called up too soon and one only gets one opportunity to make that all important first impression to today's discerning wrestling fans," Ross said. Link: Jim Ross blog on jrsbarbq.com.

WWE recently signed Jason Garrison, who was working as an advertising salesman for a newspaper, as a potential wrestler/manager based on his modern-day "The Genius" character. That's a nod to Torch Talk all-star Lanny Poffo, who played the smarter-than-you heel manager of the Beverly Brothers on WWF TV two decades ago.

Garrison told the newspaper he was working for that his character "is a sort of intellectual egomaniac." His character's name is Fletcher Chase (related to Chevy Chase's character in the movie "Fletch") and Garrison says he "annoys people with his book smarts." Link: Jason Garrison story

Another potential talent is Bazooka Joe, who checks in at 6'1" and 250 pounds. Joe, who trained at Harley Race's school in Missouri, isn't signed to a WWE developmental deal yet, but he was given a recent try-out in Tampa.

"Recently I went down to Tampa, Florida for the WWE tryout/developmental camp and that was an unbelievable experience," Joe told Slam Wrestling in an interview. "Guys like Steve Keirn, Billy Kidman, Norman Smiley, Tom Pritchard, all those guys train you down there. I learned more in that week than six or seven months on the indy circuit." Link: Slam Wrestling article.

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