Is It Time To Give Up On Jack Swagger?

[knockaroundguy13]

No, its definately not time to give up on him. He's got a world of potential, but for some reason, he's being burried at the moment. He's got great in ring work, his mic skills are half decent, and he's definately got a good look. I think he just needs to be put in the right feud, and get a rub off of a big name player. If Kurt Angle was still around, I think they'd have had a 5 star classic at Mania by now, and he'd either be a current or former world champion (I dont see the ECW title as a true world title)

 

[TNAFanboy]

To be honest, I never have cared for him as a Wrestler, not even when I used to watch ECW (and he used to be ECDub champ back then), and I Don't think I ever will. The guy can't wrestle, his background is of real Wrestling, this is scripted wrestling, and he's terrible at it. I wouldn't mind WWE releasing him or anything, I had actually thought he'd be a future US champ or something though, but nope, I was way off and instead they give him the Santino/Jillian/Chris Masters gimmick of being a 'Comedic Jobber' and what not.

 

[Chill]

No, not at all. The fact of the matter is that Jack Swagger is 27 years old and has plenty of time to grow into his own so to speak. It is clear that his immediate push is over but that isn't to say that he still can't go on and make a name for himself.

While I'm not much of a fan myself, he does have the typical attributes WWE goes for, he has size, the wrestling ability, reasonable levels of charisma and that surely will bode well in his favour in the long run.

It seems to be notoriously difficult for mid card talent to break out on Raw and unfortunately for Swagger, WWE appear intent on making The Miz Raw's next established mid card heel which means he will just have to be patient and wait his turn or hope he gets moved to Smackdown. Overall, I wouldn't give up on Swagger by any means...

 

[mitchblaze]

I think this is the start of Swagger getting a push. Now it may sound strange but like a push in reverse, he loses matches to people he should beat and becomes this frustrated angry soul (just look at his baby tantrum on raw last week) and then hopefully something will click and he'll start winning and challanging (and hopefully drop the all american american crap while he does it)

 

[Vintage Nick]

Swagger was ok when I first saw him in ECW, was a decent ECW champion. When he moved to RAW, I wondered if he would get the U.S. title soon upon being drafted, OR he would be buried into the midcard grave. It appears the latter happened, because he feuded for the U.S. title for a while, disappeared, came back to say he would go undefeated for the rest of the year and loses on the first night. He disappears again, and comes back to issue his All-American American challenge (have you guys noticed that he seemed to gain a little bit of weight?) and loses miserably to Santino, and then Mark Henry in the same challenge the next week in under a minute.

His mic skills are average for a guy with his condition and he's a good athlete, but I think there's no hope for him on RAW. Either take him back to ECW/have him on Superstars, or just get rid of him.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I think this is the start of Swagger getting a push. Now it may sound strange but like a push in reverse, he loses matches to people he should beat and becomes this frustrated angry soul (just look at his baby tantrum on raw last week) and then hopefully something will click and he'll start winning and challanging (and hopefully drop the all american american crap while he does it)

That type of push doesn't always work. Look what it did to MVP.... he could have won a world title by now, his "losing streak" angle really did a number on him. I disagree with Swagger having a losing streak like MVP did because it could hurt him in the long run almost as much as that loss to Santino did. I also disagree with Swagger dropping the "all american american" gimmick because it would be perfect for a heel US Champion. I haven't given up on him yet myself because Swagger has it all, the only thing that's wrong right now is the lack of a push. Two things could save him in the future. Either win the US Championship, or get drafted to Smackdown and begin a good run there. I hope and think Swagger will still have a good future in WWE.

 

[supaman5279]

jack swagger is a talented wrestler. hes legit, kind of like a kurt angle/mr perfect kinda thing. i think its terrible that he has to job out every week, but i think this year hes gonna get drafted elsewhere, probably smackdown. i think putting him on raw was a mistake, especially wen theyre trying so hard to push kofi. i think it was jus too much star power for one show and he just got lost in the shuffle. but i do think he has wwe champion written all over him, they jus gotta give him a chance.

 

[HBK-aholic]

Despite the losses I'm not viewing him as weak, and I think 'giving up' on him is a bit strong at the moment. He has the raw talent and the look that he needs to exceed and I really think he can do well in the business. He's still quite young in business years - he only came to ECW just over a year ago, and I think this is just a part of his work in the business, he's gaining experience and getting exposure. I'm not saying the losses are good for him, simply that they're not as bad as some are making out, and I think he has the talent to fight back from them when creative think the time is right.

 

[Notorious718]

I liked Swagger when he was on ECW. He has great in-ring abilities and I could've easily seen him as the next Kurt Angle. I also personally feel that his mic skills aren't too bad considering his speech impediment. But I feel that he was pushed onto RAW way too quickly. To me, RAW is the worst place to start your mid-card career and you really have a place there only if you're a main eventer. With that said, I don't feel that Swagger is gonna really ever find his place on the RAW roster any time in the forseeable future even though I want to eventually see him as a formidable maineventer. When you see someone jobbing to friggin' Santino, you know he has a problem. I don't want to give up on him but if Swagger really is in the doghouse then he can kiss his main event aspirations goodbye.

 

[whitefox]

I kinda hope they do give up on him.

I've tried to like him, I really have. When people started tagging him as the next Kurt Angle it made me want to like him.

But he irritates the hell out of me! His annoying lisp, the lame press ups he does and the way his long arms dangle down make him look like an ALL AMERICAN AMERICAN CHIMP.

He doesn't annoy me in the way heels are supposed to, but in the way that it actually makes me want to turn the TV of when he comes on, or put my fist through it... If I I thought he could one day reach Kurt Angle's in ring ability, I could perhaps overlook all of this, but I dont.

 

[undertaker fan]

No don't give up on him. I can see him as a perfect mat wrestler and suplex machine A few germans, belly to bellies, belly to backs, verticals you have your self a kurt angle like every one said (just bigger). I liked Jack Swagger ever since he was in ECW and he really has potential. They should've kept going with the Jack Swagger VS MIZ feud because that could've been AWESOME (pun intended). In the near future the WWE needs to put the U.S. title on him to so that it can go with his All American American gimmick. But still take him over to smackdown he'll get used more and better because we all know people drown in RAW.

 

[INDYjon22]

I enjoy Swagger. He has really grown on me over these last couple months since he came to Raw. He has good ring skills and a decent character (though the WWE has way to many cocky heels at the moment), and decent mic skills which have gotten much better since his debut, I mean I barely hear his lisp now, maybe that is just me.

I think this inexplicable stop to his push is bull. He was successful as a heel champion over on ECW yet they have not even given him a chance with a U.S. title or anything on Raw. I think they need to put a tag belt or U.S. belt on him on Raw before they totally write him off or at the very least move him over to Smackdown where he will be allowed to improve and grow as a performer.

However, I do wonder if the WWE is setting Swagger up for an MVP like angle, where he goes on a losing streak and jobs for a few months before being moved back up the ladder and given a new push. It could work and could potentially be what the WWE is trying to do.

 

[axl626]

But he isn't unique in the least. We've had the amateur/olympic wrestler thing before, a lot of times. Rick Steiner, Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar. One of those was good while he wrestled, one is still great, and the other was alright. Swagger falls into the latter, he just needs the headgear now. Swagger doesn't have the charisma or ring psychology of Kurt Angle or the overwhelming presence of Lesnar. He's kind of goofy looking and he'll probably fade away or become the next big comedy skit.

 

[JJYanks121]

Swagger has been on WWE tv for a little over a year...........yea, that's it. It's amazing in this day that instant gratification is the only way to please anyone. It is unfair to compare the kid to Kurt Angle, because not only did Angle possess great physical skills, but he adapted well to sports entertainment and did well with a microphone. Swagger is WAY behind the curve in terms of mic skills. He very much could have and still could benefit by having a manager or mouthpiece of some sort.

As for his push, the WWE gave the fans a choice essentially. They put 2 heels out there as challengers for the U.S. title. The fans gave A LOT more heat to the Miz and they went with him. To say anything else is ludicrous and just conspiracy theory. This isn't creatives fault, nor is it Vince's (the scapegoat of all scapegoats on this board). The fault lies, if you want to call it fault, in Swagger himself simply not being on par with the Miz. While you could argue that his ring skills are better than the Miz's in that he has that amateur background, you'd probably be right. But in the arena of sports entertainment where feuds need to be sold, people are buying Miz's CHARACTER more. Swagger needs to figure out character traits people can pinpoint and dislike if he's going to be a heel.

My suggestion would be to get Swagger paired up with somebody. The best case scenario in today's WWE landscape is a diva with mic skills. My suggestion might sound crazy but I think it could work. I'm going to team Swagger with Jillian Hall. Yep, I said it. However, it's going to be a new version of them. The angle would start with Swagger being pissed off in the back about his most recent loss. He'd be flailing his arms about when he almost hits Jillian who takes an interest in Swagger's problems. He'd talk about not getting a chance despite his amateur success and Jillian would talk about her success on the amateur circuit. They could have an epiphany that together, they can take over the WWE on talent alone. At first, they wouldn't do that well, but their new characters who are vicious, vile, and angry, would work a more ruthless style and come out with little fanfare meaning no celebrating, no pushups, no singing. Just two focused heels who then start to help each other out. As time goes on, Swagger sets his sights on the U.S. belt as he feels someone that was the best in America already deserves to be U.S. champion. However, it is Jillian hyping him up and videos could be shown of his collegiate accomplishments. At this point, he will take on MVP, who he briefly feuded with before, but this time, it'll be more serious. Jillian will call the WWE universe out for wanting a criminal to be the representative for a title that represents the United States over a man who has always done it right. Then again, the country has become overriden with crime and deceit so it makes sense that they would cheer a criminal they can relate to. This would hopefully get Swagger a ton of heat and could be a quality program. As stated, with Jillian speaking for him, the message will come out better as Swagger just isn't cutting it on the mic. Jillian isn't bad in that regard and she could actually be a quality heel champion. Hell, I'd take her over Maryse any day. They could, over time, become a power couple that started from the ground up and develop an ego as a result. It has great possibilities, but the point is, Swagger needs a mouthpiece so his wrestling can stand on its own. They'll be plenty of room for him to have this opportunity once Miz moves on to the main event (which is going to happen by the end of 2010 I believe). Swagger can be a champion one day if he develops his character more. Ditch the shtick of repeating yourself and just get the message out that you are accomplished as an amateur, but find something else so that you aren't just a cheap knockoff of Kurt Angle. My idea could help him a lot, but I do think the WWE still has high hopes for hte kid as we see him every week and he's only been around for a year. Give him time, he could develop into something.