5 most improved WWE Superstars since the 2016 Draft

At the time, many in the WWE Universe questioned the logic behind the WWE Draft. These are not the days of 2001 where the company has a bulging roster to manage. Vince has even struggled to keep one show going in recent years, so adding in a separate Smackdown Live felt like a step too far.

Despite the concerns, the Draft has actually injected some much-needed intrigue into the product. Fans appreciate the fact that Tuesday nights and Monday nights are their own separate entity, with fresh-feeling feuds emerging, and opportunities being given to deserving talents who were previously lost in the shuffle.

Amongst the two rosters, there have been certain superstars who have used the brand split to their advantage and now find themselves in a much more favourable position than before. Here are the 5 most improved superstars since the 2016 Draft:

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#1 The Miz

Talking Smack like a pro.

It seems the WWE has always gone out of its way to make sure The Miz gets his opportunities to shine in the company. Maybe it's his ability to crossover into mainstream media and represent the WWE to various news outlets, but something tells us that Vince McMahon values the A-lister pretty highly indeed.

That being said, his career has been a bit of a rollercoaster over the years, having numerous mid-card title reigns under his belt and becoming a one-time WWE Champion but never reaching the heights of a John Cena or Randy Orton. His main event appearance at Wrestlemania 27, while still very impressive, is generally seen as one of the more forgettable main events in Mania history.

Since the 2016 Draft, Miz has spent the majority of his time as the Intercontinental Champion, and he has made a thoroughly decent job of it. Prior to the split, his title reign felt a little lost in the shuffle, feuding with guys like Kane, Zack Ryder and Cesaro. When he was first drafted to Smackdown, he was allowed the space and time to make the belt feel special, to the point where his segments were considered a major part of the show overall.

Miz was involved in some of the best feuds of 2016/17, initially with Dolph Ziggler and later with John Cena, leading up to their Wrestlemania showdown earlier this year. His greatest moment came during an episode of Talking Smack where he responded aggressively to comments made by Daniel Bryan. WWE fans saw a side to Miz they were not previously familiar with, and he has been riding the wave of that new found respect ever since.

One thing Miz has going for him over anybody else in the company right now is his ability to be the right kind of heel. Far too often, so-called bad guys don't try hard enough to make people dislike them and instead lap up the adulation they get. Miz knows how to work a crowd, always ensuring he is the villain of the story. He showed that on Smackdown against Ziggler and Apollo Crews, and continues to demonstrate it on RAW, elevating Dean Ambrose's standing in the company in the process.

#2 Naomi

Feel the GLOW.

The mark of a true WWE superstar isn't always measured by how many title reigns they have under their belt. Sometimes you have to look at certain people who were once considered all but redundant but who then managed to struggle back to the top. This is certainly the case with current Smackdown Women's Champion Naomi.

Owing to her athleticism and above average abilities on the microphone, the WWE has always tried its best to find a place for the former Funkadactyl, but things haven't always been straight forward. When the women's revolution took over the company in 2015, Naomi was pretty much lost in the shuffle, with superstars like Sasha Banks and Charlotte getting most of the attention. Her pairing up with Banks and Tamina as part of Team Bad felt more like a stepping stone for the Boss than an actual attempt to get all three women over.

Naomi went into the draft having just recovered from an ankle injury and found herself on the newly formed Smackdown Live women's division. There's no denying that the blue brand has handled its women's roster much better than RAW since the split, and Naomi has been a leading example of this.

Winning the Smackdown Women's Championship against Alexa Bliss was quite a surprise at the time, with most expecting her reign to be short lived. To her credit, she has defied expectations and now actually comes across as a worthy champion. She has provided much-needed stability in the division since the Superstar shakeup earlier in the year, looking down at the rest of the roster all fighting amongst themselves for a shot at her title.

She has also gone through a successful image change, turning face immediately after the draft following a less than impressive run as a heel. She now has one of the most eye-catching entrances of the whole roster and has even adapted the championship belt to better suit her gimmick.

The only downside is that because she holds the belt, she wasn't involved in the first ever women's MITB ladder match, and has instead been playing babysitter to Lana. Hopefully, her upcoming feud with Natalya will put her back in the spotlight heading into Summerslam.

#3 Jinder Mahal

An unlikely champion.

Jinder Mahal's rise to the top of the WWE main event scene might not have kicked in immediately after the 2016 Draft, but out of all the names on this list, his ascension has probably had the biggest impact. Mahal is the true embodiment of the fact that when it comes to the WWE, there is always the possibility of redemption.

The 2016 Draft did allow the Modern Day Maharaja a way back into the company after a brief spell away in the indies. In order to shore up the overly-stretched rosters of RAW and Smackdown, Vince turned to people he had previously not had any use for. At first, however, it appeared as though not a lot had changed.

His time of RAW was forgettable at best, being involved in various storylines that led nowhere. It wasn't until his draft to Smackdown following Wrestlemania 33 that his career took off in a way nobody could have imagined.

Smackdown presents itself as the land of opportunity, and on a throwaway edition of the show, Jinder was suddenly given his opportunity when he became the number one contender for Randy Orton's WWE Championship. Defying all expectations, Jinder went on to win the belt from Orton at Backlash and has not looked back since.

Whether the push was too fast is still a point of contention for many fans, but to the man's credit, Jinder hasn't performed too badly so far. His true test will probably come later this month at Summerslam where he is due to face either John Cena or Shinsuke Nakamura in what will be one of the signature matches of the show.

The Draft was always going to be an opportunity for the more forgotten superstars to be afforded opportunities, and Jinder has been able to take advantage of it like no other.

#4 Alexa Bliss

The Goddess.

When Alexa Bliss was recruited to Smackdown as part of the 2016 Draft, there were still large sections of the WWE Universe who knew very little about her. Even the more hardcore fans who tuned into NXT every week will have known much less about her than some of the other women on the Wednesday night roster like Bayley or Sasha Banks, Bliss spent most of her time on the show as a glorified cheerleader for Blake and Murphy but still managed to show off a little of her raw talent.

Her impact following the Draft was almost immediate, winning the Smackdown Women's Championship from Becky Lynch after a hard fought rivalry spanning two PPVs. She was then able to make the title her own, adding to her persona and appearance and generally finding herself as a main roster WWE Superstar.

Bliss clearly has advanced microphone skills, turning pretty much every promo she's involved with into a believable piece of television. She is often able to provide the professionalism and leadership when the rest of the roster desperately needs her to. She showed that on Smackdown where she essentially stood out from a pretty inexperienced bunch, making the newly created belt feel prestigious in the process.

Alexa's fortunes only continued after she was drafted to RAW following the Superstar Shake-up. Making an immediate impact yet again, Bliss is now the RAW Women's Champion, making her the first ever superstar to achieve championship success on both brands following the Draft.

The Superstar Shake-up saw Bliss being traded for Charlotte, who now finds herself on Smackdown. Despite RAW managing to retain the likes of Sasha Banks and Bayley, it's Bliss who has been able to fill the void left by the departure of the Queen. If she can just manage to figure out how to improve in the ring, Alexa Bliss could go down as one of the most important female athletes the company has ever seen.

#5 Braun Strowman

A real success story.

There is arguably nobody who has most benefitted from the 2016 WWE Draft more than former Wyatt Family member Braun Strowman. Following the Draft, most people assumed that Luke Harper, or maybe even Bray Wyatt himself would be the one to advance their single's career, but Strowman has proven us all wrong and in quite the admirable fashion.

Strowman's early singles push saw him transition into an old-fashioned jobber-killer, defeating smaller, local talent in a matter of seconds each week. This was a stroke of genius by the WWE Creative team, as fans were never really sure what the big man was about when part of the Wyatt family. Despite his size, he felt very much like an add-on, but his time on RAW, away from the family, allowed him to utilise his size to his advantage.

Braun's career really took off when he found himself in a feud with Roman Reigns. He had been slowly building up a reputation for himself against the likes of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, but something about the rivalry with Roman just clicked. He has obviously been able to benefit from fans' inherent dislike of Reigns, but the fact that he is still being talked about in such a strong light after nearly 5 months of the feud speaks to how well Braun has endeared himself to the WWE Universe all by himself.

He is now in the mix for the coveted Universal Championship where he is due to face Reigns, Samoa Joe and Brock Lesnar at Summerslam in a Fatal Four Way match, and there is every reason to assume he may well emerge victorious.

This would be such an impressive advancement considering where the Monster Amongst Men was on the roster just a few years ago. It's clear to see, looking back, that all he needed was some space to help his career grow organically. The future is bright for Strowman, and a lot of that is owed to being separated from Bray Wyatt following the Draft.

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