Jack Swagger's push is over

[Jack-Hammer]

http://www.wrestlinginc.com/news/wi/2009/1126/464673/jack-swagger/index.shtml

According to this link, WWE management seems to be throwing in the towel on Jack Swagger's push towards becoming a superstar. Supposedly, he hasn't panned out the way officials were hoping for and is considered to be lower than Chavo Guerrero on Raw's pecking order. Ouch.

I dunno, I think it's a mistake the WWE is making. Since the guy arrived on Raw from ECW, he's lost any and all momentum that he had coming in. Swagger hasn't been given an opportunity to shine on Raw. Whereas Dolph Ziggler on Smackdown has been placed in one Intercontinental Championship match after another, Swagger hasn't been in very many high profile matches on Raw. One of Swagger's most consistent opponents on Raw has been Evan Bourne, whom he's cleanly jobbed to on more than one occassion.

 

[Theo Mays]

I hope that isn't the case. I've always felt that Swagger had superstar potential and would be a big time star in the business. I think after a strong showing for a couple months could really elevate him. I was hoping that there would be some sort of feud between him and Miz for the US title. I think that could have done both of them wonders.

 

[Leafy]

I'm going to hope this is false because Swagger is my favorite midcarder behind Kingston. Swagger has the personality and great ring skills to become a huge star someday. I think they just don't have anything for him right now, but he's still in a feud with The Miz right? If this is true they're really dropping the ball.

 

[PEP3]

This report seems highly unlikely to me. At a minimum, aspects of it sound incredibly false. Lower than Chavo on the pecking order? They'd have to have Swagger jobbing to Alicia Fox for me to believe that. Guerrero just spent six month losing weekly battles with a (I'm going to say it) midget. That's about as far down the pecking order as it gets at the moment.

What WWE needs to do with Swagger is give him a solid series of mid-card matches for the next several months. Allow him to re-build some momentum. Maybe send him back to ECW. Having him jump back onto the brand to take the title would free Christian as so many would like and give ECW as solid champ to build programming around over the next several months. It would also renew Swagger's luster for his next jump to the main roster, where I'd suggest he should wind up on Smackdown!

Were he on Smackdown, think of the incredible matches he could put on with John Morrison for the ECW title. Think of the kind of cocky, self-assured tag team he could make with Dolph Ziggler. Perhaps he could even align himself with CM Punk, who would respect Swagger's All-American American schtick, where he works hard and is dedicated to excellence.

The prospects there seem better than RAW right now, where Swagger simply hasn't gotten over like people might have expected. When he first debuted, I thought he'd find himself moving quickly toward the WWE title picture. Instead, he's been fumbling around in mid-card hell, overlooked for pushes given to people like Kofi (despite having to revamp his entire character origins & sound!) and Sheamus (who debuted from ECW, just as Swagger had months before, and is already #1 contender).

Unless WWE plans to simply bury the guy, which would be an incredible waste of talent and potential, their best bet is to either literally start over from square-one (ECW) or give him a change of scenery. Both could breathe much-needed life back into the guy, allowing him to finally get back on the footing they expected from him all along.

 

[Lethalfan]

If this is true I think wwe is making a horrible mistake. Sure the guy is blah on the mic. But the guy has good charisma and good in the ring. His character all together can be repackage. But they shouldn't give up on him when they really have not giving the guy a chance.

 

[Kenny Powers]

I really don't know how WWE can compare Swagger to Chris Masters. I mean the guy hasn't really had the ability to shine. He was ECW champion and had a great match with Cena. Since then WWE hasn't done anything with him. I know he has a lisp, but I feel its a shame that Swagger isn't higher on the card.

He should be feuding with Miz because Miz really has no competition. There is Evan Bourne and that's it, unless they want to throw MVP in the US title scene again. It's really a shame Swagger doesn't have a bigger role. I guess he will be another one of WWE's failed attempts.

 

[tornadof86]

hopefully they have not stalled jack swagger's push to the top because he is a good wrestler. he's got the skills to be wwe (or world) champion, so hopefully they do something with him soon. if it is true, then the main reason why they don't know what to do with him is because from the beginning, they packaged him as the "all american" american...that only works if you're going to stick with amateur wrestling. what they should do is send him back to ECW and repackage him as something other than the "all american" american, cause nobody cares about that anymore.

 

[The Doctor]

This story reeks of bullshit. There is no way he's lower than Chavo Guerrero or a comedy character. Swagger is good in the ring, decent on the mic, and has quite a bit o charisma.

For him to be considered lower than Chavo without them even giving him a proper program is ridiculous. I highly doubt this story's authenticity.

 

[layinDown]

if it is true, then the main reason why they don't know what to do with him is because from the beginning, they packaged him as the "all american" american...that only works if you're going to stick with amateur wrestling. what they should do is send him back to ECW and repackage him as something other than the "all american" american, cause nobody cares about that anymore.

Yea, just like Kurt Angle didn't get anywhere being pushed as the only Olympic Gold Medalist in the WWE, despite the fact that the WWE isn't the Olympics. I don't even know what ever happened to Kurt...oh, wait...he's managed to become one of the most successful pro wrestlers of this decade and had a promotion built around him.

Swagger does not need to be repackaged in any capacity. Just like Kurt's olympic crap annoyed the fans, it's the same deal with Swagger being an All-American...it adds some instant athletic credibility and instantly annoys the crowd. The fact that his "jerk character" has an American flag in his entrance video is just another prime example; it's all designed to give him heat. All the guy needs to do is be allowed to develop his character further and be put into a feud w/ Miz that lasts into Wrestlemania.

Btw, I think the original article from wrestlinginc.com is complete BS. It simply doesn't make any sense. Like someone else said: lower than Chavo? Come on.

 

[The Con Volt]

You know, it's funny, cuz I remember reading the same exact article yesterday, only it had dolph ziggler's name in it instead. you can see that article here:
http://www.24wrestling.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1259165501&archive=&start_from=&ucat=6&

In my opinion, I'm taking both of these articles with a grain of salt. For all we know, this could just be the oblong opinion of a couple Smarks who want to spread a bunch of bull shit. Both of these guys are still pretty much on every week, so I highly doubt WWE creative has given up on either of them.

I know what you're thinking, "mr. ziggles has been in like, 1000 IC title matches and he hasn't won one of them!" Yes, but who else can you name that is seriously in that title picture right now?

And as for Jack Swagger, I agree that creative doesn't have anything for him right now. But that certainly doesn't mean his career is over. And what the hell was the Chavo comment supposed to mean? You do realize the fact that even though he's jobbing weekly to hornswoggle (not so much anymore), that he holds a lot of respect in that locker room. Laugh at him if you want, but he is on RAW EVERY SINGLE WEEK. That's more than Carlito, Primo, Chris Masters, even Legacy can say.

 

[PEP3]

And as for Jack Swagger, I agree that creative doesn't have anything for him right now. But that certainly doesn't mean his career is over. And what the hell was the Chavo comment supposed to mean? You do realize the fact that even though he's jobbing weekly to hornswoggle (not so much anymore), that he holds a lot of respect in that locker room. Laugh at him if you want, but he is on RAW EVERY SINGLE WEEK. That's more than Carlito, Primo, Chris Masters, even Legacy can say.

While you seem to be arguing that Swagger could do far worse than be in a situation like Chavo's, I don't quite see how. WWE creative has made a concerted effort for nearly SIX MONTHS STRAIGHT to job Chavo out to a little person. They have effectively killed not only any and all momentum in this one time former World Heavyweight Champion's career, they have effectively destroyed his credibility as a performer all-together. It would take an act of providence to resurrect it!

How can anyone be expected to consider Chavo a viable contender to any title going forward? They will have to come up with a serious storyline to re-elevate him, and while I'm not saying it would be completely impossible (nothing in WWE is impossible, after all), it would require an ongoing and sustained effort to erase the memories of Chavo losing in every conceivable way to Hornswoggle.

Thankfully, Swagger is far from that point presently. He's lost a couple times to Evan Bourne, who is not in title contention at all at this point, but he's at least a credible performer and not a comedic personality like 'Swoggle. Swagger is still at the kind of make-it-or-break-it jumping off point. It will take little effort to turn him around. Hell, in the past, all it took was a guy like this hiring a manager who "lit a fire under him" to put him right back in the title hunt.

Meanwhile, Chavo's career is conceivably irreparably damaged. By your estimations, simply being on RAW weekly -- regardless of what you're doing while there -- is better than being involved in a storyline which, while not spotlighted every single week, successfully develops credibility and interest.

By your standards, the fact that Barry Horowitz or "Iron" Mike Sharpe were on late-'80s/early-'90s WWF broadcasts every week jobbing to the superstars makes them more important than performers who might not have been on every week but at least had defined stories. There's no way anyone should be able to buy that argument in the least.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

The more accurate term may be the WWE's cooled off on Swagger. I can't see how they can be done with him or put him behind Chavo Guererro. Swagger's still relatively green and is picking up his game. He can't help he was thrown into a situation where he had to learn on the fly. It's tough to learn how to do your job while being on the job. That's basically what Swagger has done.

Right now, creative has nothing for him, but that doesn't mean he's going to be released. He's still got more upside than anyone in the WWE, and I wouldn't risk having him go to TNA where he could become a major star. Things will be alright with him. I'll be shocked if he's released or buried.

 

[The Con Volt]

Look, I'm not saying that chavo should be thanking his lucky stars that he's even on tv, I'm just saying that chavo isn't by any means at the bottom of a totem pole just cuz he jobs to a midget. Yes it's embarrassing, scarring to his family's legacy, and down right comical, but like it or not, it IS in fact better than being in carlito's situation. What do guy's like he and Chris Masters have going for them right now? Carlito Hasn't appeared on RAW since the big show beat down. And the only thing they let Masters do is chest pumps. Primo wasn't even allowed to enter the ring last week thanks to Orton, and it appears that Ted Jr's face turn has been completely squashed for now. While Chavo has got his music playing every monday night, and he actually gets a crowd reaction unlike any of those unfortunate stars I just mentioned.

And by the way, If a storyline in the WWE really means anything at all to creative, then they WILL make a point of finding time for it every week. But this argument is pointless since we both agree that Swagger deserves more.

 

[Barbedwire Ropes]

Is it just me, or does anyone else see the potential of Jack Swagger being a huge "star" once he joins TNA?

I really wish the WWE wouldnt give up on him, but just like Mr.Kennedy and Shelton Benjamin, he wont get the push he really does deserve.

Swagger, Benjamin and Kennedy could have all been the next Stone Cold Steve Austin in my opinion.

 

[Toroc102]

Ya lower than Chavo is a bit, no a lot much, but if you look at the signs for both Ziggler and Swagger, they're both there. Classic signs of a push being derailed include, multiple losses(Ziggler), quick exits in the elimination matches(both), neither qualifying for the Battle Royal(Both, and thinking about it wow), taking a backseat to another superstar(Swagger), and of course what good has ever come from the phrase, creative has nothing good for them at the moment, usually means they never will right?

Not to be overly negative here since I really like them both, but they both have fatal flaws in them, Swagger's being his lisp, Ziggler's being his size(less fatal)and maybe his name.

 

[HBK-aholic]

Swagger is one of my favourite stars, and I doubt that this report is true. He has a lot of the qualities it takes to become a big star in the business, the look, the in ring skills, and he's also not bad on the mic. If the WWE really stopped pushing him I'd say they were making a big mistake when he could become one of the big stars of the next 5-10 years.

The idea of him in TNA is interesting, but I see his look as more related to the WWE, providing they push him correctly.

 

[Miko]

I dont really see what the hype is about Swagger, I really dont, all he's done on RAW is beat Evan Bourne in decent matches, talk with a lisp and get completely and totally outshined by The Miz every single week they were fueding. Maybe that's not so much Swagger's fault as it is The Miz's, for being awesome.

Either way, Jack Swagger just dont seem that great to me, to me he's just another Dolph Ziggler, a guy who gets barely any reaction from the crowd being desperately pushed.

 

[Blade]

I'm not a big Swagger fan, I never saw much in him apart from his size. But he's never impressed me that much in matches or in promos. With that being said, I could still see his star potential. Swagger is like a cross between Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar, so he should be at least in the midcard right now.

As for the article, I think it's right and it's true. Swagger has been buried a little bit over the last two or three weeks. He was one of the first eliminated from his Survivor Series match and he didn't even make it into the Breaking Through Battle Royale. That's kind of a bad sign for a wrestler who's been labelled the future of the WWE.

If you don't think Swagger is being buried at the moment, you've just gotta look at the evidence. We know that WWE is stopping Dolph Ziggler's midcard push. And look what happened to him; he was the first eliminated in the Survivor Series match and he didn't get into the BT battle royale. Sound familiar? Exactly, the exact same treatment Ziggler has received. Sorry, but Swagger's time has come and gone. We can only hope WWE gives him another chance in the future if they get desperate for young stars.

 

[Coco]

I don't buy that he's lower than Chavo at this point as Swagger was semi-involved with the US Champion just a few weeks ago. However, I definately believe that his pushed has cooled. This, unlike the Ziggler situation, does bother me. You have a guy with damn fine matches with Cena, Christian, and Matt Hardy under his belt (some of which are WWE MOTY contenders) who is only going to get better and who you can easily push to the moon with the always golden but currently not being used "cocky pure athlete" gimmick... and you just let him stall?

He was gaining steam on ECW every week and becoming a better and better character, even without the belt. He was working on the lisp and getting a chance to get better on the mic by speaking regularly. There's no doubt in my mind that they pulled the trigger on sending him to Raw too soon. They should have had a six month (at least) plan for the guy before sending him to the big leagues, kept him on ECW to continue a slower build, or sent him to SmackDown. The switch was shortsighted on WWE's part and we have a great young prospect in a place he doesn't need to be because of it.

 

[gd]

Ya, the WWE really dropped the ball on Swagger. He had a great debut on Raw in the 3 on 1 match against Orton. But after that, they never really had a plan for him. He had a shit feud with MVP that lead to MVP winning for some reason. After that, he didn't really do much of anything execpt for a few Evan Bourne matches, some he won and other he lost n a fluke manner. Pretty pointless. He eventually was in something with the Miz and could've made progress with his going undefeated for the rest of the year storyline, but they pulled the plug on that quickly. Now what happens to him? He's in a tag match where his partners are Chavo and Masters. That is horrible.

I would've really liked to see Swagger challenge Cena instead of Miz, but because of how they've handled Swagger recently, that wasn't really an option. Maybe if Swagger would've still had his streak going it would've been possible, but he has just lost too much momentum at this point. They shoulda pulled the trigger on him a few months ago. He's a great in ring worker who has had some of the best matches of the year and just has an awesome look, there is no reason he should be near the bottom of the card on a show that desparately needs new stars.

 

[The Best At What I Do]

WWE didn't just drop the ball, they popped that shit. They're stopping Swagger's and Ziggler's pushes while they give Sheamus and Escobar title opportunities? FTW!? Swag and Zig are two of the best in-ring workers in the midcard today. In fact, you can put them in a tag team and call it Zig-n-Swag and they're promised tag gold. However, they deserve better than that right now. Another case of talents being wasted by the E

 

[Dagger Dias]

That really sucks that Swagger's push might be ending. I like Swagger. He's the best out of the new guys in my opinion. I noticed something though. His push started dying down when Sheamus came to Raw. Is it possible that Swagger was supposed to win the title opportunity next but Sheamus inherited the push because of being friends with Triple H? I'm not saying anything, just throwing that out as a possibility.

Back on Swagger's push though.... THIS push may be ending, but I hope he gets another one. I'm sure eventually he will because he's honestly the best new guy they have. He's like a cooler version of Kurt Angle.

 

[P. Nut Butters]

I really don't think WWE will never push Swagger, well at least that's what I like to hope now that they seem to be getting their act together and pushing younger talent. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me if Swagger is shown the door or spends the rest of his days jobbing. He's not awful. I'd rather watch Swagger main-event over most folks on the WWE roster, but I'd probably give him a bit of an attire change. The guy is "the next Kurt Angle" for lack of a better description and is probably one of four or five guys I would pave a clear path for the main event much like the ones given to Orton and Batista years back.

This is a shame really - and about Ziggler too. Let's hope this Sheamus fellow can really drag the wagon.

 

[Mr. TM]

I never fully trust reports like this, but I do have one comment, a comment I said, or maybe just thought a long time ago. Swagger got brought to the wrong brand. The US title is much more achievable and open to talent on Smackdown, and I feel as though he would have been champion over there a few times in the midcard picture, after his great run in ECW. I also feel that his style would have been terrific for the brand.

 

[EliteRiot]

I don't get it. His mic work is pretty good minus the lisp, he has a different look, and he's decent in the ring! Push him and push him hard! Jack Swagger has a bright future!