5 things Samoa Joe can do as a babyface on WWE RAW

Disclaimer: The views of the author do not necessarily reflect those of Sportskeeda.

After suffering a broken thumb, Samoa Joe took some time off WWE TV, but he returned as a commentator on RAW and has done a stellar job. When Joe does decide to hang up his boots, he has a pretty sweet permanent gig waiting for him. However, it seems like he's returning to the ring once again, but this time, he'll be a babyface.

Seth Rollins and AOP went on a path of destruction on RAW, attacking Rey Mysterio and Kevin Owens. Akam and Rezar then put their hands on Joe, putting him through the announce table. This could surely lead to a face turn for the Samoan Submission Machine.

Joe has been the voice of reason on the Red brand's commentary team, constantly bringing astute points and expert analysis that only an industry veteran who is still in the game could bring. This is a natural turn for him, as he is set to play the good guy for the first time on the main roster.

The former United States Champion began his NXT career as a babyface, before quickly slotting into his more comfortable heel role to feud with Finn Balor. However, with Samoa Joe seemingly turning babyface for the first time on RAW, here are five things he could do.

---

#5 A loose alliance

These two have similar trajectories

Samoa Joe got attacked by Seth Rollins and AOP, who are currently feuding with Kevin Owens. When you think about it, both of them aren't very different. They both had successful careers outside of WWE, with no real indication that the company would sign them.

Owens and Joe joined NXT with no guarantee that Vince McMahon would want them on the main roster. They started as babyfaces, before quickly turning heel to enter the main event scene in Full Sail.

Joe even made his NXT debut at KO's expense, interrupting his devastating beating of Sami Zayn at Takeover: Unstoppable. They eventually joined the main roster, after stints with the NXT Championship.

The Samoan even allied with Owens when he arrived on RAW, in the lead up to WrestleMania 33. Eventually, both men have found themselves together again. This time though, it's thanks to the wrath of the villainous Architect and his henchmen. Funny how things work out.

This program could help form a loose alliance based on mutual respect between two modern wrestling greats. As everything in pro wrestling is cyclical, Owens and Joe could eventually form a full-blown tag team and challenge for the RAW Tag Team Championships in the future.

#4 US Title Open Challenge

He makes a good champ

Samoa Joe is a 2-time United States Champion, reigning with the title for a few months in the first half of 2019. He had a few title defenses, including a shockingly quick one at WrestleMania, against Rey Mysterio. It made Joe look like an absolute monster.

He was also the only champion on WWE's main roster to keep his belt for the entirety of WrestleMania week. However, he lost the US Title shortly afterward before regaining it when Mysterio, who beat him, was forced to vacate the belt due to injury.

Joe ended up losing the title to Ricochet at Stomping Grounds and has not had a rematch since. The title is currently back on Mysterio's waist and while it wouldn't be very heroic for the Samoan Submission Machine to take it from the Ultimate Underdog, the star-spangled belt should eventually return to the grasp of the former NXT Champion.

Joe as United States Champion had a lot of promise, as he makes titles feel more prestigious thanks to his excellent promos and overall sense of urgency.

The Samoan could use his phenomenal in-ring skills to showcase the US Championship by re-instating the US Title Open Challenge, building new stars while advancing his character in the process.

#3 Finally beating AJ Styles

These two had a great series of matches together

During their WWE tenures, AJ Styles and Samoa Joe have faced each other many times with most of them being for the WWE Championship. They had a long feud in the summer of 2018, heading into the fall.

Styles and Joe faced each other several times with the belt on the line, and at the end of it all, the Phenomenal One stood tall with his WWE Title intact. Joe's only win in the series was by disqualification, at SummerSlam. However, the chemistry they shared was incredible, and given another chance, they would do wonderful things again.

Now that Styles is a heel and the leader of The O.C, this could be the perfect time to re-hash his issue with Joe. It would certainly provide an interesting dynamic, with Joe being the good guy against the villainous pitbull in AJ.

The match could certainly rank amongst their best, provided both men bring their A-games. It would even make for a fantastic moment of salvation for Joe when he finally vanquishes the one man who had been a thorn in his side throughout his run on SmackDown Live in 2018.

#2 A Samoan dynasty

This could be a universal boon

Samoa Joe isn't related to the famous Anoa'i family, which has produced countless legendary Samoans in WWE. Big names like The Rock, Yokozuna, and Umaga have come from the family.

Currently, Roman Reigns and The Usos carry that flag high. Joe, while Samoan as his name suggests, does not come from that line of legends. However, he would certainly do well by aligning with his fellow Samoans.

While this possibility is one for the future, with Joe on RAW and Reigns on SmackDown, it's an interesting proposition. They have been at odds in the past, but Joe has most recently shown compassion towards Reigns when he teased a babyface turn back in August.

These four Samoans can rule the roost and reign on top of the Blue brand on FOX, with Reigns as the world champion, Joe as the mid-card champion, and the Usos as the tag team champions.

They could even book Naomi, Nia Jax, and Tamina into this prospective stable. A Samoan dynasty would be a fresh angle and we certainly don't get enough multi-man stables in WWE today. If booked correctly, this stable could become one of the greatest in modern WWE history.

After all, most of Reigns' best work has come alongside stablemates. While he doesn't necessarily need a team to be a credible main eventer, this could be more beneficial for those around him - Joe included.

#1 Slaying the Beast once and for all

A huge opportunity

One of Samoa Joe's most compelling feuds in his WWE career came against Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship. It was also one of Lesnar's most interesting feuds.

The pair only had a single one-on-one match, exemplifying how good the program was. Joe posed a threat as big as any when he slowly threatened Paul Heyman and put him to sleep one night after winning a grueling 5-way Extreme Rules match to face the Beast for the big red belt.

Their match at Great Balls of Fire was a great ball of fire. It was a pocket of ferocious intensity, with Joe dominating Lesnar for a good portion of the match. Unfortunately, this match was during Lesnar's first reign, which was meant to end at the hands of Roman Reigns.

Therefore, the match could only end in a Lesnar victory. Since then, Joe has lost every single WWE Title match he's had. However, with Lesnar still on top 2 and a half years later, now is as good a time as any for some sweet revenge.

Babyface Joe could genuinely be one of the most over Superstars in the entire WWE, with the entire crowd already chanting his name during his run as a heel. This makes him a prime contender to face Lesnar for the WWE Championship and take the title from him.

It would make for an amazing story, especially knowing that the Samoan Samoan Submission Machine is a believable contender to end Lesnar's tyranny of the World Championship scene.

WWE should seriously consider booking Joe to beat Lesnar and bring the WWE Title back to RAW on a full-time basis. It would make up for the many failures he's endured over the years. The ensuing title reign wouldn't even need to be a long one, as the moment would be enough.