5 Things WWE Subtly told us on SmackDown: Huge title change finally happening, Possible spoiler on another big Royal Rumble return (January 28th, 2021)

It was a good episode of SmackDown this week as it was the go-home show to the Royal Rumble 2022.

The road to WrestleMania begins tomorrow night, but before that could happen, SmackDown was the final stop.

There were a lot of interesting things that happened this week on SmackDown, with the go-home segment being the one that will make all the headlines.

A lot is going to happen at the Rumble show, and before that, here is what WWE subtly told us this week:

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#5. The tale of two brothers on SmackDown and what it means for the future

Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns is a classic example of how the history between two superstars can make for a captivating feud. They've had a rivalry before, but it has been over half a decade since their last proper world title feud as singles stars.

So much has happened between that time, but that is what makes it even more special. Unlike other competitors, nobody has been able to get into Roman Reigns' head on SmackDown the way Seth Rollins has.

And this is considering the fact that Reigns has run through the likes of Edge, Daniel Bryan, John Cena, and more in 2021 alone. The final segment of the night was a war of words between the two, which was essentially one-sided in favor of Rollins.

The 4-time world champion knew that he was in Roman Reigns' head, and he did everything he could and said whatever he wanted to in order to rile him up.

Reigns' facial expressions told the story of somebody who was trying hard to accept that all of what happened was water under the bridge.

What Reigns couldn't accept, however, was what happened on one fatal night in June 2014. The night when Seth Rollins took a chair and hit Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose (now Jon Moxley) to the back, ending The Shield.

There have been many reunions since, but none have wiped away the pain it caused Reigns.

It was interesting to see Reigns say that he would never forgive Rollins for what he did to "us," referring to himself and Moxley. Rollins did enough to rile Roman Reigns up, and this could be the last episode where we see Roman Reigns holding the Universal Championship.

It has been 517 days since Roman Reigns' Universal title run began, and this could also be the end, now that he has surpassed Brock Lesnar. All roads seem to be leading to the end of his title run, and who better to dethrone him than Seth Rollins?

#4. Sasha Banks' return may not be the only one we see from SmackDown in the women's Royal Rumble

SmackDown opened with the women having a war of words and battling it out. It saw the continuation of some mini-feuds, like that between Natalya and Aliyah.

Natalya, for instance, was still obsessed over the record time that Aliyah beat her in and wanted to set a new record for herself.

However, it was the return of The Boss Sasha Banks that got the biggest reaction.

With more than 20 women announced for the Royal Rumble, there isn't much of a window for surprises - and even less so for the men.

However, the Women's Rumble match has been filling up nicely, and Sasha Banks' return to SmackDown is a big one.

However, she might not be the only big return we see from SmackDown.

One other favorite to potentially even win the women's Royal Rumble is Bayley. The former Women's Champion hasn't been seen since her injury in July, and if she is cleared to compete, then the Royal Rumble could be yet another jewel in her growling list of accomplishments in WWE.

#3. Naomi exorcises her demons on SmackDown, but it isn't over yet

Naomi vs. Sonya Deville has been repeatedly booked and re-booked on SmackDown in the last few months. For over 150 days, Sonya Deville had been tormenting Naomi for reasons unknown.

From depriving her of opportunities to simply cheating her out of other ones, it was frustrating for fans to watch a fan favorite like Naomi have to jump hurdles constantly. In the eyes of some, the storyline was being dragged on for far too long.

WWE decided that they would have the defining match-up this week, and it went smoothly without any interference. Thankfully, WWE realized that it was better to have a good pay-off rather than drag on the feud by having Deville win to get heat.

Naomi defeated Sonya Deville clean, but the feud seems like it could still continue. Deville announced herself for the Women's Royal Rumble match, which means that she could be the one to eliminate Naomi.

How the story will play out after that, we're not sure. But the latest episode of SmackDown and Naomi's clean victory was a step in the right direction.

#2. Why is Rick Boogs being presented as the more important superstar on SmackDown?

The Rick Boogs-Shinsuke Nakamura pairing on SmackDown has been a good one to watch. Boogs has a natural charisma about himself, and it has helped get both men over on the blue brand.

But Shinsuke Nakamura hasn't been the most active Intercontinental Champion, nor has he been a great one.

Unfortunately, virtually every United States and Intercontinental Championship reign he has had has ended with him not defending the title as much as he should.

A classic case is happening right now. Sami Zayn is the number one contender to the Intercontinental Championship, but he still hasn't gotten his title shot. It should be mentioned that in between, Nakamura wasn't cleared to wrestle until recently.

Either way, the episode of In-Zayn on tonight's SmackDown featured Jinder Mahal and Shanky in what was a bizarre segment. They were interrupted by Rick Boogs, and the tag team match took place also featuring the Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura.

But it was Rick Boogs who picked up the win after pinning Shanky.

It's interesting to see that WWE seems more interested in protecting Boogs despite him not being the champion. Perhaps that could be one of the reasons when they inevitably break up, which we hope isn't anytime soon.

#1. The reason why Big E returned to SmackDown

Big E returned to SmackDown on the episode despite being a RAW star. His fellow-Day 1 competitor Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens have also been jumping in and out of the blue brand, but for a different reason.

In the case of Big E, he has been helping Kofi Kingston following King Woods' injury and time away.

Also, the feud between The New Day and Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss essentially replaced the one they had with Drew McIntyre and the now-released Jeff Hardy.

It isn't a bad story, as Big E isn't in the WWE title picture at the moment on RAW, and Kofi Kingston needs all the help he can get on SmackDown. It seems as though The New Day put a full stop to their feud against Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss.

It's good momentum for both men ahead of the Royal Rumble match, as some have speculated that Big E could be one of the favorites to win the match. It will be interesting to see if WWE gives him the big win after how his world title reign was handled.