5 stars who struggled in NXT but are soaring on the main roster

#2 Elias

"What does WWE stand for?"

So, this was a very, very close one. Given recent events, Elias could have easily been number one here.

Everyone remembers The Drifter from NXT, but can you remember him ever gaining any serious momentum? Elias, in fact, had a pretty monumental losing streak which saw him leave NXT after losing a Loser Leaves NXT Match to Kassius Ohno, before losing to Oney Lorcan when he tried to return as El Vagabundo.

Things could not be more different for Elias on the main roster, though. WWE dropped his surname and seemingly give The Drifter the spotlight, quite literally every week in the middle of the ring with his guitar.

Elias caught the eye in the ring during a match with Roman Reigns where he'd go on to lose, but he recently has pinfall victories over John Cena and, more recently, Seth Rollins in a night where Rollins pinned Cena and Reigns beforehand.

It looks like The Drifter has his sights set on WrestleMania, too, where a win at Elimination Chamber could see Elias strum his way to a Universal Championship Match with Brock Lesnar. If not, we're pretty sure he'll have a big part to play there anyway, and Elias' future looks brighter than ever.