What to do with Rowan?

[MartialHorror]

Erick Rowan has been out of action for a few months now, cutting short plans on reuniting him with Harper. If he hadn't gotten injured, he probably would be with the rest of the family. But instead they got Braun, who has been presented as a Lesnar-esque monster. Now Rowan doesn't seem that impressive...

Then again, nor does Harper...or Bray...They might as well just make them glorified valets now. But anyway, when Rowan returns, do you think he will return to the family? Should he?

Or maybe he should join Ambrose and Reigns, evening up the numbers game. This would make the most sense, if they recruit a third member. This isn't taking into account the extent of his injury, as we don't know if he will even be cleared to wrestle before this feud ends. But if he joins Wyatt, he'll likely be overshadowed by everyone else. Braun is bigger and stronger, Harper is more athletic and is a better talker, and Bray has his charisma. Rowan would just be...there.

On the other hand, Rowan has shown more ability than Braun. It's hard to judge though, as these kinds of monsters don't get a lot of opportunity to show the extent of their skills when being booked as an unstoppable force. No one knew that Rusev could do until he fought Swagger (or maybe Big E, for some). I'd heard that Braun was a terrible talker, but I saw the clip and he didn't seem bad to me. Rowan is also not bad on the mic, even if the pacing of his words always feels off.

Another problem with Rowan joining the Wyatts is that he's been treated as a somewhat comical character, something Harper thankfully avoided when the Wyatts split up. It would just be a little strange. But then...what else is there for him? On his own, he's just not that interesting as a solo competitor.

 

[Papa Pillman]

I would think that if Rowan returns in time to be part of this current angle, it is most likely that he would even the numbers by joining the Dean/Roman side.

He is big enough to help counteract Strowman's size advantage, and the whole white sheep versus black sheep shtick could write itself.

 

[@smarkmouth]

Then again, nor does Harper...or Bray...They might as well just make them glorified valets now.

Keep in mind that WWE needs to think ahead. They hotshotted Strowmam to the main roster to fill the void that Rowan's injury made, far before he was ready by WWE standards. Braun fit a mold of Wyatt Family member, and didn't have the baggage of history and established characters that the rest of the NXT has. So, he skipped developmental because he works... for now. I doubt WWE is betting on him in the long-run. I don't say this to be a hater, but when they need Strowmam to be something other than invincible, he'll likely be exposed.

Therefore, protect Wyatt. Protect Harper. They have more longevity than Braun.

In regards to Rowan, he was dwindling to begin with. It was a mistake by WWE to cut him from Harper to begin with, but that choice was made, and Rowan sunk and didn't swim. It's unfortunate if his poorly timed injury resulted in his termination, but I wouldn't be surprised.

 

[L@RISANO]

Hopefully, assuming a 3rd guy is on the way for Ambreigns(something I'm not a fan of) then I do hope that Erick Rowan isn't that third guy, rather, I'd say he should join up with the Wyatt family again, as he was back teaming with Harper before getting injured.

Ntm, if he were to be the 3rd guy, it'd be a pleasant surprise for the initial moment and then... meh, just as it was when he joined Team Cena going into the last Survivor Series PPV.

 

[MartialHorror]

Keep in mind that WWE needs to think ahead. They hotshotted Strowmam to the main roster to fill the void that Rowan's injury made, far before he was ready by WWE standards. Braun fit a mold of Wyatt Family member, and didn't have the baggage of history and established characters that the rest of the NXT has. So, he skipped developmental because he works... for now. I doubt WWE is betting on him in the long-run. I don't say this to be a hater, but when they need Strowmam to be something other than invincible, he'll likely be exposed.

Therefore, protect Wyatt. Protect Harper. They have more longevity than Braun.

In regards to Rowan, he was dwindling to begin with. It was a mistake by WWE to cut him from Harper to begin with, but that choice was made, and Rowan sunk and didn't swim. It's unfortunate if his poorly timed injury resulted in his termination, but I wouldn't be surprised.

You're probably right and Braun would hardly be the first 'invincible monster' to flounder once the invincibility part wears off. But they've already made their decision and unfortunately for both Harper and Bray- they've lost too much momentum for me to ever truly take them seriously again as potential main eventers.

Then again, Reigns and Ambrose are becoming more and more flimsy as well...unless they pull a "Zeus"-esque angle where they figure out a weakness and suddenly Braun no longer feels as powerful.

 

[kadroan]

Erick Rowan has been out of action for a few months now, cutting short plans on reuniting him with Harper. If he hadn't gotten injured, he probably would be with the rest of the family. But instead they got Braun, who has been presented as a Lesnar-esque monster. Now Rowan doesn't seem that impressive...

Then again, nor does Harper...or Bray...They might as well just make them glorified valets now. But anyway, when Rowan returns, do you think he will return to the family? Should he?

Or maybe he should join Ambrose and Reigns, evening up the numbers game. This would make the most sense, if they recruit a third member. This isn't taking into account the extent of his injury, as we don't know if he will even be cleared to wrestle before this feud ends. But if he joins Wyatt, he'll likely be overshadowed by everyone else. Braun is bigger and stronger, Harper is more athletic and is a better talker, and Bray has his charisma. Rowan would just be...there.

On the other hand, Rowan has shown more ability than Braun. It's hard to judge though, as these kinds of monsters don't get a lot of opportunity to show the extent of their skills when being booked as an unstoppable force. No one knew that Rusev could do until he fought Swagger (or maybe Big E, for some). I'd heard that Braun was a terrible talker, but I saw the clip and he didn't seem bad to me. Rowan is also not bad on the mic, even if the pacing of his words always feels off.

Another problem with Rowan joining the Wyatts is that he's been treated as a somewhat comical character, something Harper thankfully avoided when the Wyatts split up. It would just be a little strange. But then...what else is there for him? On his own, he's just not that interesting as a solo competitor.

I think he should rejoin The Wyatt Family. They would have the mystique back in the group. Bray wouldn't have to wrestle so much so it would be a big deal when he wrestles. Harper and Rowan reunited, great tag team, could compete in the tag title picture, face Reigns/Ambrose for now. Strowman could be like Bray's bodyguard.

 

[N!CKALAS CAGE]

He should just rejoin the Wyatt's. Rowan already reunited with Harper before he was injured, so it makes sense. And they're an awesome team.

What wouldn't make sense is for Rowan to join Ambrose/Reigns. Having Rowan constantly flip flop between face and heel is just bad booking. And Rowan didn't do very well on own. He needs the Harper and Wyatt more than they need him.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think there's two things they could do with him.

1. Rejoin The Wyatt Family

That's the way I'd go. If they aren't going to repackage him completely as a new character then I'd just stick him back in the family. There's still only 3 members of the faction so taking that number up to 4 wouldn't be a problem. Rowan just "fits" with the Wyatt's, and he could either team up with Luke Harper again or he could form a new team with Braun Stowman with Harper wrestling in singles.

I don't think there's a future for Erick Rowan on his own away from the Wyatt family.

However, if he is returning in the near future....they could have him team up with Reigns and Ambrose. That would even the sides to 3 vs 3, and Rowan could talk about how he was held back and manipulated by Bray Wyatt, but now he's broken the spell and is his own man....only to turn on Ambrose and Reigns and cost his team the match, rejoining the Wyatts.

 

[OYDK]

Well, I personally hope he reunites with the Wyatt Family as it makes the most sense right now. Rowan was a heel for a long time, than he became face for a few months before turning heel again... to turn him face upon his return would be a very bad booking decision and it would likely hurt Rowan a hell of a lot more than help him. I pray to God he doesn't join Ambrose and Reigns as that would seem like a major opportunity wasted.

3 does not have to be the magic cut-off number. A stable can easily have 4 people. It actually makes more sense for the Wyatts to be a 4 man group as Harper/Rowan can focus on the tag titles again, while Braun is used as Wyatt's personal instrument. For all intents and purposes, Rowan won't work anywhere else, so either put him with the Wyatt clan or let him go.

 

[MizMark11]

I don't think Rowan should split from the Wyatt's. Ever.

He's not strong enough on the mic to be on his own and he's not good enough in the ring to have a decent singles push. They tried that before and it just didn't work at all. Therefore they shouldn't put him with Dean/Roman. Maybe they will at the start, but then he just turns on them as a part of Bray's plan.

Plus as someone said before, stables can have four members for sure. Plus Bray doesn't wrestle that often, so he's almost like a manager in a way. You can have Harper and Rowan handle the tag team matches since they're pretty good together (as is Harper by himself) and then you can have Braun as the muscle. Due to his size and idea of his character, I believe Braun should be limited to in-ring appearances unless it absolutely calls for it.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Now Rowan doesn't seem that impressive....

That's what I've been thinking. I was interested in seeing Rowan rejoining the family even before Luke Harper came back to Bray. Now, unless Creative has plans to expand the Wyatt clan until they look like the last days of NWO.....with a roster the size of the 3rd regimen...... I can't see a place for Erick, and if there's no spot in the family, I can't imagine what they could have for him anywhere else in the company, unless it involves fighting against Bray and his country cousins, as they've done before. Problem is, that program has a short shelf life and I don't know what they'd do with Erick after it's over.

Never like to see anyone lose their job due to injury or illness, but in this case......

 

[ASKane]

Rowen does not have the talent to be anymore than the big man within a stable so IF WWE brings him back he should be with the Wyatt's however I'm not opposed to just leaving him off TV permanently.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

Rowan needs to be repackaged into something else entirely. He hasn't done anything in the WWE worth mentioning and a brand new direction is in order....whatever that may be.

 

[JoeMallard]

Just stick him back with the Wyatt Family aka the new Ministry of Darkness!

 

[Aquaman6686]

Hopefully nothing. Just release him. Erick Rowan is so bad he makes the other two mediocre guys look incredible by comparison. His singles push might be the single biggest flop in wrestling history. Everyone is better off without Erick Rowan on TV.

 

[BringThePain834]

Oh come on now, this theme was GOAT.

[YOUTUBE]d_lSm-JFac0[/YOUTUBE]

 

[Dagger Dias]

There are a number of different things they could do with Rowan but two stick out as better ideas than the others. The first one and the idea that I like the best is to put him back into the Wyatt stable. So what if there would be four? Bray and Strowman can go for singles titles while Harper and Rowan can chase the Tag Team Championship to get the reign they have missed out on. Bray gets a bigger group, Harper gets a tag team partner, and Rowan does not get lost in the shuffle. This is the best route that WWE could go. The only other good option would be to align him with Reigns and Ambrose against the Wyatts. Rowan was a face before his brief reunion with Harper and I may be in the minority but I liked the character they were building with him last fall when he turned face. He'd fit in with Reigns and Ambrose for this angle, they could enlist his help backstage in a segment after a promo where Rowan tries to re-join Bray only to get destroyed by Strowman or something. 6 man tag team feud established. What else could they even do with him? Random midcard feuds? Whether he is a face or a heel he would be better off in a storyline with the Wyatts whether he is re-joining them or fighting against them. I just hope that they do use him. He is decent in the ring and I really liked his face entrance theme. My concern is that he will get lost in the shuffle if they bring him back without inserting him into Reigns & Ambrose's team or back into the Wyatts.

 

[Vanilla Midget]

The only option is for him to return to the Wyatt Family, anything else sees him lost in the shuffle and plummeting down the card. I enjoyed his face run, the initial aligning against Harper was interesting albeit swervey storytelling. For all I or other may have enjoyed it, he sure fell flat on his face. "Big Red" couldn't connect with the crowd, his reactions were dead.

Harper and Rowan have so much unfinished business as a tag team. There's been no evidence in promo or in booking that give any indication that Strowman is a replacement for Rowan, he's a new follower of the buzzards. If Wyatt was saying, "Rowan was weak, here's this new guy," we'd have an indication. There's no stone engravings saying the Wyatt Family is three members maximum, quite the contrary. Their gimmick is a cult, and cults grow.

The best stables in history generally consist of four guys. The Four Horsemen, Evolution, the second DX (plus Chyna or Stephanie). The two singles guy and a tag team formula is tried and true, so why not the Wyatts? Strowman acts as the muscle for Wyatt as well as the future star while Harper and Rowan focus on their tag team.

Prior to Rowan's injury, Harper and he had adopted the Dudley Death Drop as their finishing move. Guess who just returned to WWE? I don't know about you but Harper and Rowan vs the Dudley Boyz in a 3D table match sounds pretty WrestleMania to me.

All this and the fact that most of the dirt sheets are reporting Rowan's injury return timetable to be four to six months. If he was hurt late June, early July, that puts his return time as November optimistically, January/February realistically. To me that means he won't be eligible for an ill-conceived face turn in three weeks.

I don't know who teams with Reigns and Ambrose, but it's not Rowan, a man who needs to spend time as a heel in a tag team with Luke Harper so he can develop his character and connect with the fans. Rowan returns and takes his place alongside his family, anything else would be poor booking that will see Rowan's eventual release.

 

[Terry Gyimah]

Rowan should rejoin the Wyatt Family because with him, Wyatt, Braun and Harper think about just how strong the 4 of them would be especially with Rowan back in the fold along with Braun and Harper and then Wyatt as the leader of this bunch

Harper and Rowan as the tag team of the stable, Braun as the enforcer/muscle and Wyatt as the leader/manager it is perfect really

 

[Rhodes2TheFuture3313]

I wouldn't mind if Rowan returns to even the odds against the Wyatt family only to turn on Ambrose and Reigns at NOC. That's good storytelling and then you can have Ambrose & Reigns get a shot at the Tagteam titles on random Raw or Smackdown only for The Wyatt's to attack and cost them the match. I don't know what you do at Hell In A Cell, but at Survivor Series you have The Dudleyz, Reigns, and Ambrose vs. the Wyatt Family traditional Survivor Series Survival Elimination Match which Ambrose or Reigns win.

 

[mkw1962]

Erik should join back up with the Wyatt's, he can tag with Luke again. I can see Luke and Erik win the Tag Titles, they can hold the belts for a while because they have the monster and Bray in there corner. They really do not need any help but the family always sticks together.
1. Luke & Erik (Tag Team Champions )
2. Bray and his Bodyguard ( Intercontinental Champion )

 

[Rayne]

If the WWE wants to keep the services of the person currently acting as Erick Rowan, they're going to have to go the Husky Harris route and rebrand him as a different character. The Erick Rowan character is so pigeonholed that almost every response to the 'what to do' question is "put him back in the Wyatt family". OK, but where does he go a year or two from now? Unlike most stables where the members shelve some individuality for the sake of getting the group over, Rowan's gimmick is the stable. Without it, you get "what to do with Erick Rowan?" questions.