Should WWE have an offseason for wrestlers?

[agentmichaelscarn]

It's a topic that has been beaten to death for awhile now but I'm going to do a different take on it.

I'm not proposing an offseason like in other sports, I'm proposing you stagger the offseason between wrestlers.

Say you have 50 active wrestlers, maybe have 12 of them take 3 month "offseasons" at a time and rotate it throughout the year.

This way all your talent gets a break and stays fresh and your show can still go on. Plus this allows you to incorporate more wrestlers while the other talent is off, which will only help their stock. I think this could help guys stay healthy, help build more stars and keep talent happy.

You would obviously try to stagger it so not all the big stars are off at once, but if done right I think you wouldn't miss guys and can still put together quality shows. What do you think?

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

If it was done right, that way an off-season could keep certain talents fresh. You could even take six or seven guys at once , like Wade Barrett , Stardust, Cesaro , Ascension and Bo Dallas. Some of these guys could use an NXT reboot...and others can stay off T.V and out of the minds of wrestling fans to get a refresh. Maybe even come back with a changed Heel/face alignment or a changed gimmick.

Undertaker has done it a dozen times. Every time his return got a big pop and he was fresh again.

Kane has done it a few times.

 

[Navi]

I've been a huge advocate of wrestler's having some sort of off season, a break so to speak. But in reality, what happens to story lines that they are involved in? Let's say someone like Sheamus who was the MITB holder, what happens to him? You can't take 3 months off the time he's holding it.

I would love to see them get a break like a week or so a month. In other words only do a 3 week schedule, and stay at home and rest for a week. They work weekends, and in most jobs if you work weekends you get time off through the week for it. If that doesn't work give them a month off, when a story line ends.

We've seen though how John Cena is missed just in three weeks from RAW, so giving them a couple of weeks off here and there, we'd get used to it. There is enough wrestlers on the roster for them to do it. And you're right it would get different people on TV and not the same old, same old every week.

Might be better than having them wrestle day in and day out, and end up off for 5-9 months with a serious injury. Right now we have Rollins, Orton, Rusev, Kidd, Zayn, Itami and possibly Cesaro out till next year.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

Maybe not a 3 month off season but it would be nice if WWE can give their wrestlers a month off a year to recoup themselves. I mean if you look at their schedule and a month a year seems reasonable so they can be with their families and heal themselves from being banged up.

 

[Azane]

The real thing they need to do is rotate house show participation, the general complain I see from stars is constantly "they need me wrestling 6 days a week in front of 500 people at a house show".

They can still expect stars to show up for RAW or (Smackdown still exists, right?) and with only a 1 or 2 wrestle schedule with a couple days travel, it could really lighten a lot of stress that the overworked stars see, while not deteriorating the quality of Television Kayfabe.

They also need to be a lot better about giving people time to recover from injuries, everyone is working hurt right now, because if they "complain" about being injured, they lose their spot, and since Wrestling competition is backstage, that's ultimately everything.

The roster rotation idea does have a nice side effect though, is it would rotate the top guys out a bit allowing more young talent to flourish, everytime WWE makes a huge growth, it's when they're pressured to push new people because the universe takes the top drawers out.

 

[Checkmate]

I'd be fine with the idea, but it would be tricky to implement.

First of all, it wouldn't be mandatory, since these guys are independent contractors, and the ones lower on the totem pole might not be able to afford the off season. In addition, who would want to take off from January to April? That's like WWE's prime time, and everyone wants to be involved, plus it is often an all-hands-on-deck scenario behind the scenes as well. Also, as mentioned by others above, guys with lingering storylines or things like the MitB briefcase will need to be present more than others.

However, if implemented properly, perhaps a one-month off period per guy could work. Certain times would be off limits, like blackout dates, but the late spring, early summer, entire fall, and early winter all have months where guys can get some much needed rest. And a month may seem short, but that's effectively one PPV cycle without certain guys, more than enough time to build a feud or plant seeds for a storyline involving guys not typically used.

Management would need to be on top of who is off when, as it could get out of control pretty quickly. Too many people might want off the same days, and that could be an issue, so there would need to be a policy implemented. But, that's a company problem, not ours. Could it be done? Sure.

 

[Reflection]

If someone needs some (non-emergency) holidays, they should get it, just like in any other job... and I think they do get it, as long as they are not booked in an ongoing storyline. But there is a good chance that it is frowned upon by the higher ups, and as such, anyone that's not a top guy or a senior member might hesitate asking for it. Having this provision would be really helpful for the talents, although WWE probably won't go that route because they like to have total control over the talents and commitment from them, irrespective of whether there is any program for them or not.

However, I don't think that a leave like this should be made mandatory, for many wrestlers need to be present throughout the year and perform in order to impress the fans and gain their support. A mandatory leave might just stand in the way, or come about just as he starts getting some momentum. Also, the act of taking time off and coming back to get a huge reaction, works for those talents that are already established and have set their marks on the fans' minds; it won't have a positive effect for everyone. It might also stand in the way of writers booking freely, as they will have to keep the holidays in mind as well. It also has the chance of making the talents lazy, unmotivated or a bit rusty from sitting idle for a whole month or more, not necessarily by choice... although on the positive side, it might give them a change of routine and freshen up their minds and bodies, if they are given the option to pick a time.

Further reading: Here is a thread on a similar topic from a few years ago:
http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=222563

 

[d_henderson1810]

Yes. I think they can take a break between Christmas and New Year.

In fact, this is how I would run it.

Final episode of "Raw" of year:- Night after "TLC-Tables, Ladders, Chairs"

Final episode of "Smackdown" of year:- Two nights after "TLC-Tables, Ladders & Chairs"

Next week:- RAW:- "Tribute To The Troops" (since this is filmed the week before, just telecast it while the WWE talent takes a break. They don't need to come to work for this).

Smackdown:- "The Best Of The Year-2015"- All the best matches and highlights of the past year. Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler can top and tail it, which they can do before they have their break, and it can be edited into the special later (nobody needs to go to WWE for this show either, since it is a highlights show, which can be done earlier and then shown at a later time).

CHRISTMAS WEEK-break
NEW YEARS- break

Then return three weeks before "WWE Royal Rumble".

I have seen some years where there is seven weeks between "TLC" and "RR", and RR doesn't need seven weeks build-up, when it usually only has four matches.

The week following "TLC" and the three weeks before "RR" is plenty of time to build programs etc. The other three weeks, around Christmas-New Year, let the talent take time off, and have WWE specials or something fill the gap.

 

[Grizzly0u812]

I like the idea of allow wrestlers to have time off, like others have said it would allow them to recharge their batteries plus it would allow them to spend some quality time with family as I am sure being on the road as much as they are they miss so much of their family life and if the have kids well your missing the best years of them growing up because your on the road more then your with them, so yeah giving proper time off to enjoy a break which would allow others to have ring time and work on their character and be able to mix it up with other wrestlers maybe they might not of had a chance to because of the size and popularity of some of the more season wrestlers, who knows maybe some of the mid card guys might actually shine if given the proper setting and the right people, not everyone can work a good match together.

Plus giving them time off might actually extend their shelf life in WWE rather then working day after day until the are so hurt they are force to take time off, being off when your hurt is not really time off when your trying to heal up, pretty sure Rollins is not having fun rehabbing his Knee and allowing it to heal up and stuff.

And of course when they come back the pop they will get, do the traditional get hurt in the ring and they are written off then come back when you least expect it

 

[Mustang Sally]

It's an interesting idea, although I believe 3 months is too long to be away from work. I would sooner think a month is enough time to give the body and mind a decent rest, with an occasional few days off in between, whether the absence encompasses TV appearances or house shows.

This way, nothing would have to be explained for storyline purposes, nor would the announcers need to tell us why someone wasn't around that night. As far as the show at hand goes, the performer simply wasn't scheduled to be on the card that night.

Jeez, I wish I had a month off each year. Of course, my job doesn't require physical exertion to the extent that a pro wrestler's does, but then again, I'm not paid the kind of money they get, y'know?

 

[rmp0012002]

There is no way Vince is putting his entire roster on a holiday so forget that idea. A lot of these guys should be gone but without the territories to bring in new faces Vince is stuck with using the same guys over and over. And some do get breaks by Vince sending them to do his crappy movies and game shows but until he finds another source of talent that will put up with his crap the WWE is going to have keep writing injury storylines when he burns his workers out.

 

[Prince Vee]

I don't know but I once felt all the top stars were on vacation when this year's Royal Rumble started with Miz and R-Truth opening the match and when the buzz was there set for a huge return, Zack Ryder blows it up with his return!

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I've been a huge advocate of wrestler's having some sort of off season, a break so to speak. But in reality, what happens to story lines that they are involved in? Let's say someone like Sheamus who was the MITB holder, what happens to him? You can't take 3 months off the time he's holding it.

I would love to see them get a break like a week or so a month. In other words only do a 3 week schedule, and stay at home and rest for a week. They work weekends, and in most jobs if you work weekends you get time off through the week for it. If that doesn't work give them a month off, when a story line ends.

We've seen though how John Cena is missed just in three weeks from RAW, so giving them a couple of weeks off here and there, we'd get used to it. There is enough wrestlers on the roster for them to do it. And you're right it would get different people on TV and not the same old, same old every week.

Might be better than having them wrestle day in and day out, and end up off for 5-9 months with a serious injury. Right now we have Rollins, Orton, Rusev, Kidd, Zayn, Itami and possibly Cesaro out till next year.

On the contrary. Sheamus being off T.V for three months makes people forget about him and more importantly it makes them forget about the MITB briefcase. If they did this three months ago and laid out a false claim that WWE was no longer going with the MITB concept , last nights cash in would've been a way bigger shock than it was.

 

[FlairFan2003]

Guys take time off and/or work reduced schedules for time periods all the time, and have for decades. Storyline wise its easy, you wrap up the current story your in and lay low for a bit, then re emerge. Sometimes we get injury angles, etc to explain bigger stars leaving.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Is this that big of a deal in WWE?

I know there have been some injuries lately but would time off prevent them? Maybe, or maybe the time off would lead to rust setting in.

I think the performers should be allowed time off and WWE needs to be more respectful of the talent's wishes but guys today seem to be doing just fine without the drugs of the past.

Plus who is going to pay for all of this? WWE doesn't want to lose money and the wrestlers don't want to lose money. You get a small window to set yourself up for life in the wrestling business and some guys would be crazy to risk income and their spot just for some time off to possibly recover.

 

[Messiah]

Bad idea. They've never had an off season and never will.. If the talent are too fragile to stay healthy, they need to find better talent.

 

[kadroan]

It's a topic that has been beaten to death for awhile now but I'm going to do a different take on it.

I'm not proposing an offseason like in other sports, I'm proposing you stagger the offseason between wrestlers.

Say you have 50 active wrestlers, maybe have 12 of them take 3 month "offseasons" at a time and rotate it throughout the year.

This way all your talent gets a break and stays fresh and your show can still go on. Plus this allows you to incorporate more wrestlers while the other talent is off, which will only help their stock. I think this could help guys stay healthy, help build more stars and keep talent happy.

You would obviously try to stagger it so not all the big stars are off at once, but if done right I think you wouldn't miss guys and can still put together quality shows. What do you think?

A 3 month off-season would be great. It just sucks because WWE would lose a lot of money short term since they make money year round doing shows.

Long term, however, it would benefit WWE. People would actually anticipate the "season premier of WWE in September, you won't have Smackdowns and house shows not being sold out in various cities since it would now be a privilege for WWE to host an event in your city.

In my opinion the off-season should be from October (HIAC to TLC). They're usually the worst stretch of PPVs, forced gimmick PPVs. It would avoid MNF, MLB Playoffs and Love and Hip Hop. It would make the ROTW and Summerslam a bigger deal and WWE seem like a legitimate sport.