What if these five WWE Superstars had signed with AEW in recent years, such as Logan Paul or Becky Lynch? My list of the most intriguing potential jumps – TOP FIVE LIST

It’s always been fun as a fan to dream up the “what if?” scenarios. Whether it’s a dream team in sports, a crossover team up between Marvel and DC Comics, or what a program between two wrestlers that have never worked together. It’s a conversation-starter between friends or something to debate in a social media forum. Podcasts have been done where territories are rebooked, but what could it look like today in a shuffle up?

Are there any trades to AEW that would make a long term difference? They’ve had top stars like Bryan Danielson and C.M. Punk in the past, and one of their top stars was once in The Shield with Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, but it’s hard to see Jon Moxley’s start power as equal to his former teammates.

Until it’s consistent and we see long term that stories are being built (instead of booking a World Championship match with another babyface on a 12 day build because someone dropped their belt) on a core group of stars that people care about, I am convinced that you could have Andre the Giant tag with Hulk Hogan against Steve Austin and The Rock, and it wouldn’t help draw a year after the match.

When the right star is given the correct direction, they can be a draw. Not in massive numbers, but there are enough indicators that there are stars that are draws to a certain segment of the wrestling audience. If given the right direction and creative, who are five stars who could make a difference?

Seth Rollins

In so many ways, he’s low key the best player they have in WWE today. A combination of Shawn Michaels and Randy Savage, he’s shown the ability to be a top level babyface and heel. He’s also shown the ability to produce a show, and his name has come up as someone who could run the company in the future.

I for one would love to see Seth have a new cast to face off against. Kenny Omega, “Hangman” Page, Swerve, MJF, and Kazuchika Okada would all be fascinating match-ups. The problem in AEW is having a solid matchmaker at the helm who isn’t a great storyteller. That’s where I’d hope to see Seth come up with his ideas. How he could start out feuding with Mox that led to a teaming. Plan it out over a three year arc and not rush everything.

Dominik Mysterio

There is a lot of value in owning your name as a wrestler, and what a name he has! Three generations now have had the moniker of Mysterio, and Dirty Dom may be the best of them.

He’s not as flashy or as innovative as his dead-beat dad, but the character-work is top shelf. The way he draws heat, comedic timing, and constant improvement in the ring give glimmers of the performer he will eventually grow to be. Would he be able to develop all of those tools without the WWE machine? I’m not sure he would have, but now that he holds the abilities, combined with his own instincts, I would hope that WWE makes sure his contract is long and lucrative.

Logan Paul

Part of this is curiosity. Could he have the same matches without the ability to work them out with WWE’s top trainers and producers? Logan knows how to talk and draw heat, and is a promotional machine. He’s not super smart to how the wrestling business works though, as was seen in his interview with Hulk Hogan and not understanding basic terms.

He would bring the eyeballs, though. One could say he’s a big part of the current WWE success, as it has been since his first match that the business has grown even more. While I see him being a part of that, I don’t think he’s the main contributing factor. Maybe he could prove me wrong?

ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…

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Becky Lynch

This woman does what she sets her mind out to do. I gained much respect for Becky after reading her book. She is one to set goals and work her ass off to achieve that goal. Her current reign as Women’s Intercontinental Champion is a reign I didn’t know we all needed. The way she sold for 90 pounds of an A.J. Lee with ring rust was exactly what the angle needed to set A.J.’s character up as a threat. Between her, Toni Storm, and Mercedes Moné, we could have real depth of talent and star power, able to elevate the talent that is there, making it better for the next generation.

Cody Rhodes

The prodigal son has come home. Honestly, this is the only one that could truly elevate AEW. Much went so well with his first run, and I believe his time in WWE has taught his lessons from what wasn’t going well for him towards the end. It was strong enough for WWE to pick him up and make him their top star.

Putting The Elite back together for another run would be phenomenal, but with WWE being so hot, in part because of Cody, and the hurts left after the last run may put us in a place where we will never see that, but I’ve lived to see Hell get pretty cold before in wrestling.

What are your thoughts who could actually contribute long term to the success of AEW? Let me know from the comment section on NerdstalgiaShop on Facebook where I’ve posted this article, and also thoughts about who could go from AEW to the main roster of WWE, as I’ll leave my thoughts on that next week.

(Griffin is a lifelong fan of wrestling, superheroes, and rebellious music of all forms. He is the owner of Nerdstalgia, and you can shop online, learn about visiting the store in Colorado Springs, or catch him at a comic con in the Rocky Mountain area by going to http://nerdstalgia.shop.)

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