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Roman Reigns has been the anointed one since 2014, having been the recipient of a mega-push starting with his record-breaking performance at Royal Rumble 2014. The pops he had been getting through 2014 soon died by the turn of 2015, and Reigns was subject to one of the largest boos in WWE history at Royal Rumble 2015 (in the same building he was cheered a year prior).
Ever since then, Roman has had a topsy-turvy tenure in the WWE. Despite his constant push, Reigns has failed to get over with the crowd. He has been portrayed to be comprehensively inferior to Brock Lesnar, has had a wellness suspension, took a clean pinfall in the Shield Triple Threat in 2016 and saw the crowd walk out on him mid-match at Backlash 2018. No one can question the physical gifts that Reigns has been given, and his persona seems alluring to many. What does WWE have to do to save the next big thing?
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#5 A shift to the mid-card
Roman has been so deliberately painted as the top guy for the past 4 years that fans have started to resent him. His constant presence in the main event and highlighted spots on Raw has caused fans to get bored with his relatively stale character (more on that later). His one-dimensional main card feuds which are micro-managed to every detail have caused more and more disdain against his top spot on the card.
Roman's run as the Intercontinental Champion, while Braun Strowman was in the main event changed fans perception of him. He was having tremendous matches and excelled in his feud against The Miz. Maybe he needs to resume that mid-card role for a while, as stars like Owens, Strowman, and Rollins can take the top spot. Give him an extended run their, while fans warm up to him again will be a great direction to take him in.
#4 Changing his character
What exactly is Roman Reigns' character? Sometimes he is a whiny or braggadocios heel or he is John Cena 2.0. There is no definable way to look at Roman. He was a powerhouse, which fit him perfectly, but to add more variations to his character, WWE has overdone the changes. It isn't a question about heel or face, but a question of who he is in general.
Roman fit perfectly as a powerhouse who could run through the entire roster. He has that look of an absolute brute who can beat up whoever he wants. What made Roman over while he was in the Shield was the fact that he was a hard-hitting guy that you can't mess with. Why not give him that role again? Or, why not just accept his natural suave by making him embrace a more cocky character, like the one that The Rock did? As you can see in the attached video, he has the tools to be one cocky guy and he does it well. Some character direction would help him go a long way.
#3 Giving him a manager
Reigns is good on the mic when he gets to give quips. A 20-minute promo segment, however, is not something Roman can carry. We have seen him fail in that spot regularly, so why keep exposing his choppy mic skills to everyone? John Cena called it out brilliantly in their last feud, which gives you further perspective on the difference that these two franchise players have. This can easily be stopped if Reigns gets a manager.
Roman was the silent assassin in the Shield. While Ambrose did the heavy-lifting on the mic, Reigns just stood there as an imposing figure. Brock Lesnar doesn't need to speak to build his matches up, he just stands there while Heyman does it for him. Considering the vibe that Reigns has, he could actually work like that. Whether it's Heyman or someone else, this would be a tremendous decision that WWE can take while re-building Roman Reigns.
#2 Actually book him well
Contrary to popular belief, Reigns isn't booked well at all. He may regularly beat up mid-card heels on Raw, but he has always failed on the big stage, primarily because WWE lost faith in him on the last minute. He failed against Brock Lesnar on multiple occasions, he has lost to Rollins clean after just a few months of winning the WWE Championship and also ate the pinfall at the first Shield Triple Threat in 2016.
Reigns can regularly defeat the likes of Elias and Kevin Owens, but we have seen it too many times for it to be effective anymore. No one can buy him as a believable threat to Brock Lesnar anymore, and Braun Strowman is on the verge of eclipsing him, only because of how carefully he has been booked. Reigns needs a reboot and a careful slow build to the top again, kind of like what Seth Rollins just did.
#1 Reunite The Shield
Isn't this a bit obvious? When WWE was going for the Shield reunion in December 2017, those were the few times Roman actually got cheered. Even though Ambrose's injury scuppered the reunion, it was the right step in rebuilding Roman in the eyes of the fans. If WWE can play off that nostalgia, and build Roman from there, it could possibly make him the mega-star that WWE has been trying to make him.
The post SummerSlam lull is the perfect time for this to happen, as Ambrose would have returned. Teaming them up and have them be a stable against the foil of say Ziggler and McIntyre, or a new authority stable with the likes of Owens and Corbin would be a perfect way to book them. Have this culminate at Survivor Series against a team from SmackDown like Sanity or New Day, and then use Roman as the bet he has the potential to be. He needs to reconnect with the fans, and this is probably the best way to do so.
