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Welcome to this week's edition of things WWE subtly told us on SmackDown. It was the go-home episode of SmackDown to Elimination Chamber 2021, and things started to heat up.
Here were the biggest things WWE subtly hinted at on SmackDown this week.
#5 ReggieMania earns Banks & Belair a title shot on SmackDown, but is he on thin ice?
ReggieMania was truly running wild on SmackDown - until Carmella stopped it. Bayley hosted the second version of Ding, Dong, Hello! featuring the Women's Tag Team Champions Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler.
Reginald came out and declared Sasha Banks as the greatest champion. The SmackDown Women's Champion soon came out and so did Bianca Belair. It eventually escalated, and Reginald provoked the heels enough to set up a six-person tag team match on SmackDown.
Reginald was the only male in that match, but he managed to get a pin over Nia Jax after some teamwork from Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair. As a result, the SmackDown Women's Champion and the 2021 Royal Rumble winner will be getting a Women's Tag Team title shot at Elimination Chamber.
WWE could be planning another "Double Champion" moment as they did with Sasha Banks, Bayley, and Asuka in 2020. It would be the second time that Sasha Banks will hold the tag team title while also being a singles Champion. But is it right to use the Women's Tag Team Championships as a prop for singles feuds?
It's interesting because Naomi and Lana aren't even in the picture. While they're on RAW and not SmackDown, they should be contenders as well. They could be a last-minute addition.
Meanwhile, Carmella was less than pleased with Reginald, telling him that she saw what happened. She then proceeded to spit out the wine he served her, and that was her role on SmackDown. Reginald seems to be on thin ice with the former SmackDown Women's Champion.
#4 Did Otis quietly turn heel on SmackDown?
This bit on SmackDown was bizarre. Otis and Chad Gable teamed up on SmackDown to take on the duo of Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio. What the point of having Dominik around was confusing as he did nothing relevant during the bout. The match was important as it could have possibly setup the next challengers to the SmackDown Tag Team titles.
Instead, the match ended with an extremely confusing finish, and it took a minute or two to even understand what was going on. The Alpha Academy, as Otis and Gable call themselves, got disqualified on SmackDown because they didn't listen to the referee's instructions.
Interestingly, there was another heel turn on SmackDown, and it was surprisingly Otis. Chad Gable instructed Otis to hit another splash on an already hurt Rey Mysterio.
We're not sure why Dominik Mysterio was even around. Rey Mysterio's role on SmackDown seems to be taking beatdowns, but the decision to turn Otis heel came as a surprise.
It seemed to be done in a very quiet way, but it might just work. Chad Gable and Otis have been getting regular TV time on SmackDown, and a feud against the Mysterio family might be what's next.
#3 Apollo Crews' heel turn is in full effect on SmackDown
Big E was ringside enjoying a healthy meal on SmackDown while being the spectator for the Apollo Crews vs Shinsuke Nakamura match. Apollo Crews felt disrespected by Big E constantly snubbing him for an Intercontinental title shot. Crews stated that if the IC Champion spoke to his royal Nigerian ancestors in the same fashion, he would have his tongue cut off.
Extreme threat aside, Big E made it clear to Michael Cole and Corey Graves that even if Apollo Crews won, he wasn't interested in facing him - especially since he already defeated Apollo Crews on multiple occasions in the past few weeks on SmackDown.
Instead, Big E was keener on praising Shinsuke Nakamura. The Japanese star won the match on SmackDown with a clever finish, and Apollo Crews instantly launched a post-match assault. After he was ready to slam Nakamura with the steel steps, Big E stopped him and went to tend to the 2018 Royal Rumble winner.
Instead, Apollo Crews launched the steel steps on both men, taking out Shinsuke Nakamura before injuring Big E. This was the heel Apollo Crews that we've been waiting to see on the main roster. Is this the start of yet another great run for Crews on SmackDown?
#2 Seth Rollins kickstarts his feud on SmackDown
Seth Rollins came out when Big E was being taken off on a stretcher on SmackDown. He compared it to his own situation the previous week, where the SmackDown locker room apparently "abandoned" him rather than accepting him as his leader.
He had an issue with Cesaro more specifically. If you remember last week on SmackDown, when the entire roster left, it was only the Swiss Cyborg who was remaining. Seth Rollins thought that the former tag team champion would take his side, but Cesaro told him that he hadn't changed as he claimed.
Seth Rollins took issue with the whole SmackDown locker room but singled out Cesaro. It was a brief promo, and Cesaro hit back at Seth Rollins before having any interaction with Edge. The latter told Cesaro that he was impressive lately, and said that The Swiss Superman had grit - something that not many Superstars on the roster have today.
It seems to be clear that Cesaro and Rollins are on a collision course and this will be a feud that will be welcomed by the WWE Universe. Both men are highly talented inside the ring and their matches will surely excite the fans.
Cesaro vs Seth Rollins. Will it be a feud for Fastlane? Or go on until WrestleMania 37?
#1 SmackDown centered around Edge this week
Edge was seen throughout SmackDown this week, interacting with Roman Reigns and the other babyfaces in the Elimination Chamber match. He told Roman Reigns that The Tribal Chief needs him to main event WrestleMania, and not the other way around.
Sami Zayn made a cameo as well in the segment on SmackDown and got superkicked by Jey Uso.
Throughout the night, Edge was seen interacting with the likes of Cesaro, Kevin Owens, and Daniel Bryan. The Rated-R Superstar even said that he has 13 potential opponents for WrestleMania 37.
The 2021 Men's Royal Rumble winner was on commentary in the main event of SmackDown, as Kevin Owens, Cesaro, and Daniel Bryan took on Sami Zayn, King Corbin, and Jey Uso. Bryan made Zayn submit, after which every Superstar started getting attacked due to the "every man for himself" theme.
Edge even interjected and hit a spear on Jey Uso before Roman Reigns hit The Rated-R Superstar with a spear of his own. It seems clear that Roman Reigns vs Edge is the direction for WrestleMania, despite all the teasing the Ultimate Opportunist has been doing on SmackDown and the other two brands.
