WWE SmackDown: 5 reasons why Jey Uso turned heel and aligned with Roman Reigns

It's hard to deny that the Roman Reigns-Jey Uso storyline has been the best in WWE and arguably even the best in wrestling. It's fueled SmackDown and has improved the quality of the show significantly.

The real-life relationship between Roman Reigns and Jey Uso gives it a sense of authenticity and on the latest episode of SmackDown, he finally turned heel in the main event.

Jey Uso defeated Daniel Bryan clean before telling Roman Reigns that he's "with him". Roman Reigns ordered an assault on Daniel Bryan and that's what he got. Here are a few reasons why Jey Uso finally turned heel to align with his cousin Roman Reigns on SmackDown:

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#5 To start Roman Reigns' heel faction

There have been rumors about WWE wanting to form a Roman Reigns Samoan heel faction ever since he returned and turned heel this past summer. Given that he was finally a heel, a faction to accompany him only made sense.

And to add to that, the only two members who made sense in the immediate future would be his cousins Jey and Jimmy Uso. The trio has paired up before as a part of The Bloodline in 2016 when they were feuding with "The Club" - AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson.

They won that rivalry and would essentially disband for a while. They haven't had a proper alliance since then, although we do recall one moment heading into Survivor Series 2018 on SmackDown when Roman Reigns and The Usos went face-to-face in an Interbrand brawl.

On that occasion, it was a brilliant bit of storytelling as neither of them would attack each other. Instead, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins did the dirty work.

This time around, things are different. Roman Reigns is in a raw, emotional feud with his cousin and Jimmy Uso has been involved in two instances. The second one at Hell in a Cell saw Roman Reigns brutalize him, forcing Jey Uso to declare "I Quit".

The objective seemed to be to get to the heel Samoan faction and we were curious as to how they would get there. Turns out, it takes some great storytelling and that's exactly what it was.

While Jimmy Uso may only be returning in the first quarter of 2021, we wouldn't be surprised to see him join the alliance.

#4 To phase out the Roman Reigns-Paul Heyman relationship

Roman Reigns' alliance with Paul Heyman was a complete game-changer in 2020. The idea of Roman Reigns being managed by Paul Heyman seemed surreal, but it has become a reality.

However, Roman Reigns has made one thing clear - he isn't a Paul Heyman guy. Paul Heyman is a Roman Reigns guy. Their dynamic is completely different from what it is with Brock Lesnar.

Roman Reigns doesn't need Paul Heyman to do the talking for him. With his new cold-blooded heel character, his promos have improved significantly and that's exactly what most people predicted when they demanded a Roman Reigns heel turn five years ago.

While Paul Heyman has been instrumental in the rise of Roman Reigns in 2020, he doesn't appear to be a figure that's needed by his side long-term. We wouldn't be surprised to see Jey Uso's alliance with Roman Reigns used as a means to phase out Paul Heyman. Perhaps it could be for the best.

#3 The best utilization for Jey Uso after the Roman Reigns feud

Despite Jey Uso competing for the Universal Championship two consecutive PPVs in a row at Clash of Champions and Hell in a Cell, it was obvious that he was never going to win the title, let alone defeat Roman Reigns.

Having that knowledge, fans still thoroughly enjoyed the feud. Sometimes, it just goes to show that a predictable outcome isn't always the worst if the story that's being told is great.

And this story had exactly that - fan investment. However, there is only a limit to which Jey Uso could be in that spot before WWE decided to take him out of it. The best course of action would be for WWE to keep him around Roman Reigns but in a different capacity.

Aligning with Roman Reigns and turning heel was the best option that WWE could have gone with Jey Uso. Had they not done that, Jey Uso would likely have been lost in the shuffle very quickly. That would have been far worse.

#2 To enhance Roman Reigns' character

We've said it many times before since early September - this version of Roman Reigns is the one that we should have seen five years ago when fans had turned on him. For over three years, fans protested the Roman Reigns push and cited it as WWE shoving him down fans' throats and trying to make him the next John Cena.

There was a lot of truth to that and none of it was Roman Reigns' fault. He was forced into playing a character that wasn't authentic and it was never going to work that way. Now, we have a more "real" version of Roman Reigns and his cold-bloodedness and brutality reflects perfectly on his new character.

Ultimately, all of this is to benefit Roman Reigns and in the long run - the man who will beat him for the Universal Championship. Right now, there is nobody better in the company to hold the Universal title so it wouldn't be surprising to see Roman Reigns enjoy a long reign with the title.

Jey Uso aligning with Roman Reigns is a win-win situation that benefits both characters.

#1 To highlight Roman Reigns and give SmackDown the best storylines

Roman Reigns and Jey Uso have been a part of SmackDown - easily the best show WWE has been putting out and arguably the best wrestling show in the world right now.

According to Dave Meltzer, SmackDown getting great storylines isn't a coincidence:

The report stated that WWE did this on purpose to please those at FOX, which airs the SmackDown show every Friday. Meltzer said that WWE feel that their relationship with FOX is more important than that of USA Network, which airs RAW every Monday night. Meltzer said that WWE are guaranteed their show on the USA Network as the network requires a brand like RAW each week.

WWE wants to enhance the storyline and make it as big as possible. Since Roman Reigns is the company's biggest full-time star, it only makes sense to make him front and center of the hottest angle in wrestling. Hopefully, it reflects in the ratings and the FOX executives are pleased.