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The rise of AEW has seen the Tony Khan-led promotion become a considerable competition to the long unchallenged monopoly of WWE. The company is nowhere near the level of peak WCW yet, and they hardly pose a challenge to WWE in terms of international dominance and viewership, but it has already collected a dedicated base of followers.
The company has greatly benefited from WWE's shocking nature of releasing superstars en masse in the name of budget cuts. This has come at a time when the Vince McMahon-led promotion has seen unbelievable profits, disregarding the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. NXT stars have been most frequently released, but big main roster names have occasionally been added to the release list.
AEW has scooped up several released WWE superstars. Their roster was already teeming with former WWE superstars at that point, including their first two male world champions in Chris Jericho and Jon Moxley. However, there are some ex-WWE stars that the company has not picked up yet. These stars would fit in perfectly with the promotion's style.
Here is a list of 5 former WWE superstars that AEW should have signed but they didn't.
#5 Former WWE NXT star Kassius Ohno has history of matches with multiple AEW stars
Chris Hero is a true great of the independent wrestling scene. He has been part of numerous classics in the 21st century and has the rare ability to adapt his style to counter each opponent. However, his scale of prestige in the independent scene did not translate well to the world of WWE.
Dubbed Kassius Ohno, Hero was used as a midcard star in NXT during his first run. In his second run, he was a player-coach, and he never won a championship in the black-and-gold brand of the company.
Hero would have completely fit AEW's style, with matches against previous foes like Eddie Kingston, Bryan Danielson and CM Punk ? It's assured that he would have had his fair share of excellent watches.
#4 Former WWE 24/7 Champion EC3
AEW could certainly use EC3's charisma. He spent much of his WWE main roster career chasing after the coveted WWE 24/7 Championship. His NXT arrival marked him as a star but his aura quickly dissipated as he reached the main roster.
EC3 is charismatic, capable of capturing the audience with promos and is an excellent wrestler when paired with the right opponent. AEW, however, did not sign him after his release and EC3 moved to another promotion to control his narrative.
#3 Former WWE superstar Big Cass can be a credible big man in AEW
Unlike his tag team partner Enzo Amore, Big Cass has managed to redefine himself since his controversial release from WWE. WWE clearly viewed Cass as the bigger star of the duo and placed him in a rivalry with Daniel Bryan to raise his status.
However, Cass's backstage actions drew the ire of the roster and the company and he was released. Cass, who now wrestles under his real name, has become an important member of the Impact Wrestling roster.
Cass is not the best in-ring performer, but at this point, he is more charismatic than ever, and AEW not scooping him up to act as a dangerous foil for the rising stars of the promotion is a surprise.
#2 Former WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champion Erik Rowan
Much of Rowan's WWE career was spent teaming up with the late Brodie Lee and he made an AEW appearance on the latter's memorial show, creating an emotional moment while letting Chris Jericho his contempt for the concept of copyright.
The Dark Order is loved by the majority of AEW fans, and Rowan will easily fit into the group once led by his longtime tag team partner. However, AEW has never tried to expand Rowan's involvement beyond that one-off appearance.
#1 Former WWE Intercontinental Champion Zack Ryder has already appeared on AEW several times
Matthew Cardona has become a superstar in the professional wrestling industry. As Zack Ryder, he was unbelievably popular amongst WWE fans. The company never believed in him and he achieved little success beyond a memorable and deserving Wrestlemania moment.
However, no one expected Cardona to do a Terry Funk and become a star of hardcore wrestling. Cardona excelled in GCW deathmatches and managed to familiarize the promotion to a considerable amount of professional wrestling fans.
Cardona has made several appearances for AEW, but he has never been signed by the promotion.
Meanwhile, he continues to enrage GCW fans with his attempts to bring sports entertainment into the violent zone.
