Consequences of Roman Reigns's push as Universal champ

At Summerslam, Roman Reigns finally won the Universal title from Brock Lesnar in their 3rd match within five months this year and retrieved the gold from Lesnar's hostage. The night after, the Shield regrouped and displayed their dominance by triple power bombing Strowman through the announcer's table.

The resurgence of the Shield, changed the landscape of RAW, for better or for worse. All of this, to keep the fans cheering for Reigns.

In this article, we will be focusing on the cosequences of Roman's push that's affecting the RAW roster.

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#5 Lashley stuck in a comic role

Lashley has got it all: the look, the physique, MMA background and decent mic skills ( if you've followed his Impact run).

He is a two-time ECW world champion and one time US champ, aside from his accomplishments outside WWE where he has held multiple championships. Lashley has that prototype build that Vince McMahon adores, and even then he is stuck in a comic role because of Roman's push as the lead babyface.

Lashley should be a destroyer, and not a smiling mid-carder. He took a backseat just to let Roman conquer Lesnar, but even after their feud ended, Lashley is still relegated to comedy segments.

#4 Intercontinental championship becomes secondary

The Intercontinental title has been in the limelight when it has been in the hands of Seth Rollins who has elevated it, even main eventing PPVs. The IC title remained the top prize on RAW when Lesnar took the Universal title hostage and didn't show up for months.

What led to IC title become secondary is not the presence of the Universal title, but, the formation of The Shield. It's heading in the same direction as the US title was, in the hands of Ambrose, during the first iteration of The Shield.

The faction has only one goal: to keep Roman safe and they have been focusing more on the Universal title scene. Sure, there would still be open challenges on RAW, but Rollins is a Shield member first. The faction is bigger than the title.

#3 Strowman's heel turn

Strowman turned heel to overcome the Shield

Strowman was once a heel that everybody loved just for the beating that he laid on Reigns. It was this feud that turned him into a beloved face. Thereafter, Strowman ran roughshod on the entire roster, winning the tag belts with a 10 yr old kid and making Kevin Owens's life hell.

Life came full circle when he announced that he will cash-in his MITB contract at HIAC against the man who was responsible for his face turn. To overcomes the odds that The Shield has put in front of Strowman, he turned heel.

Strowman could have been the top babyface that the company wants Reigns to be. He had the support of the WWE Universe as well as the physique to be the poster guy. But he can't be a face champ until he is on the same brand as Reigns. Although he would still get cheers from the crowd, it would have been nice if he was a face.

#2 Dean as Sidekick

Ambrose remains the sidekick in both the title feud

When the Shield first came to the main roster, Dean Ambrose was the de facto leader of the group. With time, the leadership shifted to Reigns, Rollins became the architect of the Shield. When the group disbanded, Ambrose went solo and had a decent run in the upper mid-card.

Ambrose became WWE world champion and brought the title to Smackdown Live. He is a grand slam champion and has enough talent, charisma and fan support to main event shows. He returned to a huge ovation from the crowd but has now joined the Shield in their reunion.

The Shield is now entirely focused on the universal title scene. Although, this guarantees, Dean's constant presence in the main events, but the focus remains on Roman's title. Seth Rollins, too, with his IC title would be a secondary attraction, but it's Ambrose who is stuck in a sidekick role to both their title feuds. Dean deserves the spotlight, maybe an eventual heel turn might bring that but at the moment he is the third wheel in the Shield.

#1 Entire roster looks weak

The Shield have remained the most dominant stable in WWE in recent years and have overcome several odds during their tenure. Their ability to bring the numbers game to their advantage always remained their winning factor.

A 3 on 3 match was a cake walk for them and they fared well enough in handicapped matches as well but laying down half the roster at the same time was a bit too much. Although it served the purpose it was intended for and all the six men involved looked very strong, it made the remaining superstars of the roster look very weak.