Announce team shakeups.

[Navi]

It is being reported that not only did the roster get a shakeup but so did the announce teams.

The new announce teams are as follows. RAW - Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Bryon Saxton. SD - Mauro Ranallo, JBL and David Otunga. Superstars - Tom Phillips and Corey Graves. Main Event - Tom Phillips and David Otunga.

Noticeably absent is Jerry Lawler, and thank God for that. No word on who will be doing the PPV's when the brands met. They probably haven't thought it that far out yet.

All in all this should be good going forward with no more JBL and Bryon Saxton at each other's throats. Also bringing in Graves is a plus. Don't know much about Otunga on commentary, so I'll reserve judgement on that one.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I dig the fact that Lawler is gone as it's way past time, in my opinion. I also like that they've split up JBL and Byron Saxton as it's gotten old listening to JBL make the same insults to Saxton each week while Saxton just takes it; I know that it's JBL's job as heel commentator, I'm just bored with the same stuff Vince keeps telling him to say week after week.

Otunga's nothing special, but he doesn't suck. He essentially will be in Byron Saxton's role for SmackDown and he doesn't come off as so much of a whining bitch.

Corey Graves is a welcome addition to Raw's announce team, he's done a great job in NXT.

 

[FromGlasgow]

I think its a mistake getting rid of Lawler I hope they keep him around in some capacity one of the last remaining connections to the good old days of wrestling, I get the feeling the ones on here are probably too young to remember the Jim Ross/ Jerry Lawler commentary team, How good commentary teams could be before the dull network selling obsessed Michael Cole came along.

 

[stingray11214]

Lawler needed to go. With the whole "New Era" thing going, and so many who are better coming out of NXT, it was just dumb to keep him on commentary. Ranallo is going to look incredibly strong on SD. Corey Graves joining RAW is a huge plus. Commentary, IF VKM LEAVES IT BE, is going to be very interesting.

 

[OYDK]

I'm interested to see how Corey Graves handles Vince yelling in his ear every 5 minutes. There's something about becoming an announcer on Raw that just makes everybody kind of... suck.

Still, I'm optimistic that he can add some much needed freshness to the Raw table and I'm intrigued to see how he works with Cole and vice versa with Mauro and JBL. Also, Byron and Graves have a much better chemistry than do Byron and JBL. Pluses all around.

 

[Azane]

now I have to choose between Michael Cole or BALLGAME!

I was hoping we'd get all the fresher announcers on Smackdown, with Raw keeping the old guard.

Coles head has gotten so far Vince's ass at this point, it's painful to listen to, and the dudes still reading verbatim during matches (It's painfully noticable after the WM HIAC jump read off, now I can't help but stare at the announce desk everytime they use the entryway camera).

Corey Graves taking over JBL's job on Raw, basically, will be interesting, since he's not coming in with the experience or career that the typical heel announcers have had. If he can find his groove with the big boys, it should be great.

Otunga, Well, Otunga is looking to be the new Michael Cole, just from watching him on the preshows and other events that he's had to talk for. His voice is fine, and he's good at holding the correct ton and inflection. I think he'll do fine Color commentary, and he's playing of Mauro who is the best play-by-play in the company (Ya'know, he actually calls the matches going on at the time, instead of mentioning roman reigns 8x every match)

Lawler's heart hasnt been in his commentary (no dark pun intended) for years, so I think if he shirks to another role, or only shows up for wwe events/"ppvs" then it will give him much more fire for those events.

 

[Sean Valjean]

THANK GOD for Corey Graves on Raw. I've been begging for him to replace JBL for ages. He's the best heel commentator in the company and the only person that makes Byron tolerable. I just hope Vince doesn't screw him up with his constant ear chatter. Still, I'm very please with the Raw team.

As for Smackdown, David Otunga seems redundant. What exactly does he bring to the table? JBL already provides the heel/former wrestler analysis, so is David just supposed to be a more successful Bryon Saxton? I'd prefer Mauro and JBL fuction as a duo, but "less is more" is a non-existent concept in WWE.

But that's okay, because Corey Graves is finally on Raw. Can't wait to see how he does.

 

[TJ Matics]

Very pleased with Graves being moved onto the RAW announce team, I would have loved him and Ranallo together but that wouldn't be very fair. I agree Byron should do much better with Graves by his side, and seeing Michael Cole trying to get these two youngsters off topic should provide a few chuckles that'll slowly lead to me ramming my head against the wall.

The biggest surprise here is that Otunga is still employed, he's a smooth talker though so he should be fine. At first I thought this would be a good time to bring Renee or Phillips up to either main roaster but they have plenty of other things going on that I wouldn't want scraped so I'll deal. I won't miss Lawler a bit.

I'm interested to see how Corey Graves handles Vince yelling in his ear every 5 minutes. There's something about becoming an announcer on Raw that just makes everybody kind of... suck.

Ooh didn't think about this. Hopefully Vince won't try and force Graves to be a mold of JBL.

 

[Sean Valjean]

Ooh didn't think about this. Hopefully Vince won't try and force Graves to be a mold of JBL.

The moment Graves begins incorporating more random/inane sports references and tells Coach to make something an ESPN highlight, we're all in deep, deep doo-doo.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

This is even better news than Fin Balor on Raw. Finally, a fresh start for commentary (Especially RAW). I think with these new combos that both Raw and SmackDown will have good commentary.

Thanks for the good years with Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler. You've had a damn good run all n all.

 

[Wrestlingaholic]

Finally, the best commentator in WWE gets his shot at the big time: welcome to Raw, Corey Graves!

Extremely happy that JBL has been separated from Byron Saxton. The pathetic bullying was just that: both pathetic and bullying. Is BeAStar still a thing? It's one thing having the protagonist/antagonist format in the ring, but Jerry Lawler, Bobby Heenan and many more have proved you can be a heel commentator without being a bully. The thing about the actual wrestling is that, 9 times out of 10, the babyface wins, which tells a good anti-bullying story. You rarely get the comeuppance with announcers, so what's the point? It sends totally the wrong message.

Glad to see Jerry Lawler 'old yella'd' - his act was tired and he was becoming a pastiche of himself

 

[Woodstuff]

I think its a mistake getting rid of Lawler I hope they keep him around in some capacity one of the last remaining connections to the good old days of wrestling, I get the feeling the ones on here are probably too young to remember the Jim Ross/ Jerry Lawler commentary team, How good commentary teams could be before the dull network selling obsessed Michael Cole came along.

lmao you think smarks don't remember the Attitude Era? Also, Cole is fed lines through his headset. I'm pretty sure he doesn't push the WWE Network when he's off-screen.

Lawler was great back in the day, because A: he could get away with saying outlandish things on a weekly basis, and B: Jim Ross.

He definitely won't be missed by the majority of fans.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

Raw - I haven't heard much of Corey Graves, but everyone is saying he's really good. At the least he should be better than JBL. Michael Cole is fine, and Byron Saxton should be better without Cole. Let's just hope Vince stays out of these guys ears and lets them be themselves.

SD - Mauro Ranallo is the best commentator since Jim Ross. He just gets it. JBL is awful, and David Otunga is.. well I don't know. I didn't notice him when he filled in for Lawler. Again, I'm just hoping Vince stays out of their ears. Also JBL please don't harass Otunga like you did Saxton.

 

[Harthan]

I think it's pretty solid. I haven't heard Otunga much but I do understand he's been working lower level shows, so he's probably fine. JBL/Mauro is a pretty smart team up, I think - if JBL comes at Mauro with insults, Mauro can roll with them 1000% better than Saxton or Cole can. Also, Mauro knows everything about the sports world, so he can actually explain the random sports references that JBL throws in which Cole/Saxton just let sit and cause dead air. JBL might be the biggest winner here.

Well, other than Graves, I guess. He's the best color man in the WWE, he has proven chemistry with Saxton, and I'm sure he'll slide into calling Raw perfectly. He gets to call matches with loads of NXT alumni that he's already worked with, and I think he'll be just brilliant.

All around, both of these teams are better than they used to be. I think the third man is totally extraneous on both brands - cut Saxton and Otunga and I wouldn't care at all - but nevertheless, much improved.

 

[OYDK]

Watching NXT and just now wondering who's going to replace Graves. Not a huge deal, but whoever it is is going to have big shoes to fill.

 

[Viola Moonlight]

These pairing are genius.

Although we will no longer have our dank JBL meme of "Haha, I love it, maggle!" anymore, the shitting on of Bryon Saxton by Mr. Layfield will now cease to exist. As the alpha male, he dominated Cole and Saxton, but with Mauro being an excellent commentator who has fought back the newly-revived heel commentary of Jerry Lawler (more on him in a second), and Otunga being stronger and more intimidating than Saxton, I think we'll see JBL heel it up more, rather than looking to shit on his cohorts. Not sure how Otunga will work on commentary, so we'll have to wait and see. I can only assume Otunga will be an in-between of play-by-play and colour, taking pages out of both colleagues books. Let's hope Mauro leads the charge, and steers him in the right direction.

As for RAW, we have the same team, except with a heel commentator who will only shit on his team if they make a mistake, or will do so in a hilarious and timely fashion; he will employ tactics opposite to the JBL method, if you will. Cole can be a perfectly capable, and even great, commentator, and pairing him with Graves should do wonders for both men. Also, with JBL gone, Byron should have more time to speak, and be able to produce even greater lines than his infamous "Wow" speech. It'll be hard to top for the Saxonation, but this worm has some wiggle room to be on the ballgame, maggle.

This team leaves Jerry Lawler absent, and NXT without a colour commentator. Lawler still works many independent dates, as well as other appearances he does outside of WWE. NXT tapes their shows in advance, doing several shows in one sitting. Do you see a pattern forming here? Whilst nothing is confirmed, I can only hope the revival of heel Jerry Lawler on commentary comes down to Full Sail, fills the void left by Graves, and finishes up his final run on commentary with the hottest brand WWE has to offer. Dad jokes and ogling over the women should go over very well with the NXT crowd, and the NXT women's division.

 

[ShinChan]

I am really too happy to see these announce teams shake-ups.

Now at both shows Raw and Smackdown, I have atleast one person whom I can happily enjoy the commentary of.

Raw got Corey Graves and that guy is just too awesome in his work. He has clearly enhanced the action we get to see in the ring. A gentleman in one word description.

And on Smackdown, it's Mauro Ranallo. He is a great play-by-play commentator who actually calls the action in the ring unlike Cole who can't differentiate between Michonuko Driver and Blue Thunder Bomb.

These changes are spectacular.