I guess we can break this down year by year. Excluding everything before 2006 because those were genuine 'Build Cena UP' years rather than the other way around.
2006:
One could say this is still a year designed primarily to get Cena over- because for the most part it was- but this was also the first year that gave Booking a chance for Cena to put others over. Lets look at the candidates.
Edge:
The tally is this; at least two genuine one-on-one PPV matches, participation in a Triple-Threat Match and the first Briefcase cash-in that started the whole thing. On paper the idea looks promising; the prior year Cena spent with technically gifted wrestlers who could get him over, but unfortunately were too liked by the audience to be treated as the storyline heels they were supposed to be. Edge worked a fair bit better in that area, though still liked. In addition, Edge could go up from the feud as he was still climbing up the midcard around this time. Unfortunately, the aim was still to Build Cena up further, hence the argument that Cena got more out of these matches than Edge did. It's a legit complaint. Not that you'd expect the biggest Babyface on the roster to lose clean ever, but at some point Edge needed something legit out of the mess.
RVD:
This one you can't really blame on Cena, y'know, since RVD was caught with a bunch of weed after winning the freaking WWE Title from Cena during ONS. One can wonder, however, if Cena would've just taken the title back at Vengeance rather than have an Extreme match against Sabu(who I doubt was going to be elevated no matter what so we're not discussing him).
King Booker:
In all fairness, this wasn't so much a feud as a distraction. After all, both guys held their respective brand title belts and had two confrontations in PPVs this year, both of which were gimmicky. Still, the fact they had a subplot of Kevin Federline and Cena actually took a loss from the guy (I think anyway?) shows that even WWE isn't afraid to make their big star look like a dunce. Y'know, so long as the title's not on the line.
2007:
Okay, by now, anybody with a decent brain would think 'this is the time to see if Cena elevates talent'. Problem is, what talent? If you went by the traditional cycles back in the days of territories, this is probably when the next class of wrestling superstars would come into the fold. Didn't quite pan out that way, though a lack of development underneath WWE had a lot to do with it.
Umaga:
Traditionally, susperstar Babyfaces got monsters to feed on in their feuds. Hulk Hogan had a steady diet of behemoths outside of the special PPVs during his time in WWF. This would be the first Monster Cena got, and what a doozy. Umaga was basically riding an unbeatable streak of destruction from the last year(the wrestler himself before that was passed all around WWE and TNA and Japan and whatnot) and had finally elevated himself to the title picture. This is one of many WWE Title feuds Cena had where I think they would've been better off with a more even record. Cena losing to Umaga at New Years Revolution probably sells Umaga's unstoppable force of nature better than sneaking a roll-up victory, adds more drama to the inevitable rematch at Royal Rumble, AND it enforces Cena's underdog gimmick while giving the young fans something to rally around to support him. That said, the two matches they DID have were brutal(IE, technically void and ugly), and Umaga probably lost more being involved with Vince's haircut match with Donald Trump at WM 23 than anything else. That and getting crushed by HHH later on. But Umaga wasn't climbing any higher than this.
Great Khali:
Unlike Umaga, Khali wasn't riding a hot streak of unstoppable terror at this time. He was still a fearsome monster, but more on the level of Kane than anything truly terrifying. It's not a bad idea as long as you stick to your strengths- and this is really the one guy only the ******s on the board would claim is better in the ring than Cena, so there wasn't much to work with. I have a difficult time swallowing the idea of Khali taking the title off Cena as opposed to Umaga, but I can imagine Cena getting the tar walloped out of him both times and surviving off the skin of his teeth. Y'see, it's guys like Khali and Umaga that make the SuperCena concept WORK as opposed to nearly anybody else.
Bobby Lashley:
This one is a little harder to determine. Like RVD, outside circumstances conspired to remove Lashley before any kind of benefit or hurt could be determined after their match at GAB(Great American Bash). Lashley at the time was essentially a Pet Project of Vince McMahon, apparently being built towards the Next Great Babyface. Everybody knows the track record (Vince HIJACKING December to Dismember '06 for Lashley, Lashley being part of the Haircut match at WM 23, Lashley LOSING the ECW title to VINCE FUCKING MCMAHON then gaining it back), so a so-called 'Dream Match' against John Cena could be seen as a step up... and surprisingly, the matched turned out well. Certainly well enough to take Lashley dead serious as a Title Contender. Only... Lashley all but disappeared from WWE after this PPV('injured' against Kennedy eight days after, supposedly). If anyone's got any legit information about why Lashley took off, please enlighten me.
Randy Orton:
Prior to Summerslam they crossed paths a couple of times, albeit only in multi-man matches which are shorthand for 'Fuck me, we forgot to put these guys in storylines, so lets lump them all together' conveniences. But really, Orton was on the outer edges of Title Contention when he wasn't killing Legends and disrespecting others with punts to the face. It's quite possible that Cena/Orton was going to be the big thing for the rest of the year, maybe. Except that Cena got injured after Unforgiven and wouldn't be back until a SHOCKING appearance at the '08 Royal Rumble. But really, I don't think Orton had been in a memorable feud at this time since Undertaker in '05. So I'd call it a small rub.
2008:
This wasn't a year where Cena built up stars. This wasn't even a year where wrestlers built Cena up. This was... well, up to the WHC feud with Chris Jericho, Cena was just there. Part of the WWE Title Picture, but never won it. His biggest 'feuds' were with HHH and JBL, both already established wrestlers who couldn't be built up further. Even Randy Orton was a Title Holder around this time, which meant Cena couldn't have done more than to nudge him upwards. But by and large they kept him from anyone who could have greatly benefited from his presence, with one minor exception.
Batista:
Unlike Lashley the year prior, this was a bona-fide Dream Match on one of the biggest PPVs possible, in a setting that should've offered no room for advancement for EITHER one as far as getting rubs goes... but Cena got legit fucked up for the pin and in the end, that's the best possible rub he could've given the Animal. That said, had Cena not been injured it's possible this feud would've extended beyond Summerslam.
2009:
Only three wrestlers of note here to discuss. Not really discussing The Miz here, as he wasn't legit buried at The Bash(this was his first Singles feud in WWE, remember, and you can't be buried if you can win the WWE title sometime afterwards).
Edge:
It's worth noting that in the end, Cena didn't walk out if this brief feud with the victory and the title. Not that Edge could've gotten much of a rub from facing Cena (especially after his moments with Batista and Undertaker in the prior two years) but he did even the score from three years ago at the end of it. Unfortunately, the fact Edge walked away from the feud as a victor on Backlash might take something away from it- the post Wrestlemania PPV is often where cheap revenge victories take place.
Randy Orton:
When I look at a John Cena feud done RIGHT, this stretch of PPV matches come the absolute closest. After NOC, there's Summerslam... and Orton comes out on top. "I Quit" match at Breaking Point. Hell in a Fucking Cell in the aptly named PPV. Anything Goes Iron Man Match to blow it all off. You hit all the stops and make sure the feud is blown off, AND you have the record stay close to even. On paper its fantastic. In execution, not so much. Both guys needed someone as a proper foil and neither of them were it, which means by the time they were hitting the big stops at the end, the crowd was starting to dive on them. Very little actual rub, but that's more on the planning than on either of the guys involved.
Sheamus:
Their Tables match in TLC loses a lot of luster when you look beyond the match. You can't even really point to it as an example that Cena will lay down for an opponent because it was a 'Table-Fall' type of match (go through a table and lose) that could hide the inexperience of Sheamus and doesn't involve a pinfall to legitimize the loss.(Smarks in the upgraded seats on the Cena Hate Train will go further and cite Sheamus' status as HHH's friend to further degrade the match)
2010:
Most will easily cite this as a definite year of Cena being the ditchdigging ****e that he is. Let's have a look.
Batista:
Can't exactly call this a rub, since Batista was on his way out. But I still think this is the one Cena Feud that demanded a more even outcome- maybe a Batista win at Extreme Rules which leaves Cena demolished enough to justify what he does to the Animal in Over the Limit. But that's firmly in the realm of making Cena look more appealing. No real rub, pass.
Sheamus:
Thought we were done with this guy? Not by a long shot. Sheamus manages to take the title from Cena during a Four-Way match, then their rematch gets essentially hijacked by the NEXUS. In both cases, Cena isn't able to give much of a rub to the Irishman due to booking circumstances.
The Nexus:
The BIIIIIIIIIG Elephant in the room. Seven Youngsters from NXT making a name for themselves as a Heel faction, and the biggest Babyface in the WWE is right in their crosshairs.
WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN?!
Okay, taking it serious for a second, there were two major points where the story being told was essentially tossed aside for various reasons;
1. Edge and Jericho once commented that for the 7-on-7 match at Summerslam, Cena came up with the idea of getting piledriven into the concrete outside the ring and kicking out before winning. According to them, they told Cena it was a dumb idea, Cena did it anyway, and later admitted it was a dumb idea. I wouldn't classify it as a burial so much as the kind of fuckup that occasionally happens when you make up the match on the fly- the kind where you think something is cool but it really isn't. You'd think EVERYBODY that ever had a mistaken sense of innovation in their lives would understand, but those same people are blind about it.
2. After getting Kayfabe fired by the Nexus after refusing to help them screw Randy Orton at Survivor Series, Cena shows up a week later as part of the Audience, where he systematically assaults and destroys the Nexus until he gets a match against Wade Barrett at TLC, where he 'buries' him under tons of chairs after winning.
Not that the spectacle ends there. After CM Punk essentially revives the Nexus with Barrett forming the CORRE in response, Cena burns Nexus to the ground and pisses on the ashes at the Royal Rumble, then fucks with BOTH factions as a Guest Referee for the hell of it leading up to Wrestlemania.
The second one is much less defensible, but frankly I blame booking more than Cena(unless someone directly comes out and states Cena demanded those things) because they must've crapped their pants at a PPV without John Cena at the Main Event. Really, I'd have had Nexus terrorize TLC, with Barrett taking the WWE Title. Then have the battle for control between Barrett and CM Punk. Works like before, leading up to the Royal Rumble with the New Nexus and the CORRE staring each other down or something and then Cena's music hits.
But I'm digressing. Having a 7-on-7 match at Summerslam might have been too much too fast for the Nexus, even in victory.
2011:
Now the shit is getting revved up.
The Miz:
I've got to honestly say, I don't see a real rub here. Miz got fucked from the start because his feud partner was suddenly embroiled the the presence of THE ROCK, which turned Miz into a 3rd leg even though he held the belt. Of course, he drops it in the 'Feud Dump' of PPVs, then loses the Rubber Match "I Quit" style to Cena in the next one. So there really was no rub. You can't really even say it was a burial either because they turned right around and partnered him with R-Truth when he was one paranoid brain-fucked bastard and they revolved their entire storyline about being neglected and passed up and staged a revolt. They both stayed relevent enough to be thumped by Rock and Cena at Survivor Series, whereupon Miz was still relevent as a Title Contender up to Elimination Chamber. At that point, it was on him and we know the rest.
CM Punk:
And you thought The Nexus was a miserable case. I will say this; a lot of Punk's rub and rise came from himself and his talents. Undeniable. At the same time, Cena's name still represented a push in itself just by reputation alone. Prior to this, Punk's biggest feuds were Jeff Hardy and the Undertaker for the WHC belt. Cena was a step up, end of story. And unlike every other match where Cena's name was meant to elevate his partner, this one worked out great! They were proper foils for each other, and other than needing to have Cena's leg on the rope at Summerslam, it was fitting that Cena took the loss twice in a row with the title on the line against a legit fan favorite.
Alberto Del Rio:
Back to more of the same. Not really a rub, not really a burial. Just a placeholder(Punk was feuding with HHH and a ton of other shit was going on) while waiting for Punk to disentangle himself and get back into the title hunt. Not that you could get much of a rub for Del Rio outside of Mexico.
2012:
Not commenting on the Rock or CM Punk here, as both are established.
Zack Ryder:
Not a feud, but Ryder's association with Cena was considered a step up towards relevancy but failed to go anywhere after Kane tore him a new asshole and poured gasoline in the hole and set it afire. But the truth of the matter is I don't know how long he went on after this before floundering. Was it immediately?
Brock Lesnar:
This needed a Double Countout with the tease of future battles down the line. Over a Lesnar victory even(mainly because you couldn't buy HHH or CM Punk or any potential Title Holder being able to survive against Lesnar otherwise). That's all I will say. Got a rub for the brutality, but not enough of it.
Ryback:
Not quite there yet. Ryback was simply too 'new' and put in a Triple-Threat, which was a way of freshening up the Cena-Punk feud that was still going on. It was more about Punk than anything else.
Dolph Ziggler:
There wasn't much of a rub here, sure. There wasn't going to be a push to Main Event status, which I swear is what the smarks think should happen every time. But Ziggler did get a little bit of a rub. Waiting until after Wrestlemania to cash in negated said rub though. Nothing on Cena here.
2013:
The Shield:
Only one glancing confrontation at Elimination Chamber as part of the losing side. This was back when Shield were heels doing heelish things and various trios would come forth and try to stop them. In retrospect it makes Cena more like a footnote than someone who could give these guys a rub.
Ryback:
After finally vanquishing the Rock and regaining the WWE Title, it was time for Ryback to emerge. And okay, it looks like a burial here. I say 'looks' because it quickly became apparent that Ryback's talent was inferior to the initial push he got, so he settled into the midcard. At this point, he is what he is, and any attempts to push him wouldn't have mattered.
Daniel Bryan:
This wasn't a rub. You can't really give the rub to somebody as over as DB was at the time- and apparently still is. But it was a vindication of sorts to see Bryan win clean.
Bray Wyatt:
Time will tell with this guy, but so far it hasn't been a burial.
