Ex-WWE employee explains Jim Ross’ special role in the company (Exclusive)

Former WWE commentator Jim Ross is considered by many to be the greatest wrestling commentator of all time. The 73-year-old has been in the business since the 1970s and has been part of various wrestling promotions during this time, including New Japan Pro Wrestling and All Elite Wrestling.

While JR's commenting skills are well known, veteran writer Vince Russo revealed a special role that Jim Ross used to do for the company, away from the commentary desk. The duo worked together for several years during the Attitude Era, when Russo served as the head writer for the company.

Russo revealed on Sportskeeda Wrestling's BroDown that JR treated the roster like he was the head coach of a football team. He claimed JR held the roster to a higher standard than anyone else, and he would never settle for mediocrity on the roster.

"JR is a big Oklahoma fan, you know. JR treated that roster like he was head football coach. I mean, bro, I knew if you were on the roster, you earned your spot on the roster. I knew that. I knew JR was not a playing-favorites guy, or if you were on that roster, you deserve to be on that roster. You were not getting on that roster if you were mediocre under JR. You were not." Russo said.

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Good Ol' JR, as he was affectionately known by the WWE fans, spent two decades with the company in his first stint there. He joined the Stamford-based promotion in 1993 and remained with the promotion till 2013, during which time he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007. He would eventually return to the promotion in 2017 for a brief two-year stint before joining AEW in 2019.

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About the author

Faiz is a WWE writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. He is a BBA graduate who is passionate about sports and wants to make a career in that field. This passion led to a postgraduate degree in Journalism, which helped him pivot into becoming a sports writer. When writing, he puts the utmost importance on accuracy and thorough research.

Faiz has six years of work experience across four companies. He started his career with Zomato and then moved to Amazon. He shifted to becoming a football writer at TV9 Digital and is now with Sportskeeda. He covered the Wrestling Xtreme Mania event in Gurgaon in 2025, where he had the opportunity to interview Raj The Maharaja, fka Jinder Mahal. At the same event, he also got quick interviews with former WWE Superstar Dijak and Japanese Joshi legend Emi Sakura.

When it comes to his favourite wrestlers, Faiz has two names in mind. He loved to watch Triple H before the current WWE CCO retired, and he is a huge fan of Roman Reigns. Being a loyal fan since the Tribal Chief's SHIELD days, Faiz credits Roman's mic skills and unmatched in-ring storytelling for his mega success. When he was young, one in-ring story left a lasting impression on his mind and eventually got him hooked on WWE. That match was Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania 24. Apart from that, he is also a fan of RAW.

When Faiz is not writing for Sportskeeda, he loves to keep up with other sports. He is an avid cricket and football fan, a huge gamer, and loves playing some RPGs on the PlayStation.

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Edited by Faiz Ahmed