"He's eating time" - Cody Rhodes earns harsh criticism from WWE veteran for SmackDown promo (Exclusive)

Former WWE head writer Vince Russo recently lambasted Cody Rhodes' promo. The American Nightmare kicked off SmackDown with a promo segment this week.

He spoke about his upcoming match against Seth Rollins. The champ highlighted how WWE had several top stars like Randy Orton, Rhea Ripley, Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, and CM Punk who could fill his shoes if he weren't on the show. However, Cody pointed out how, through the years, despite his many laurels, Seth Rollins was never able to get the better of him.

During a recent episode of Sportskeeda's BroDown with host Mac Davis, Vince Russo felt the promo was nothing new. The veteran writer noted that he fast-forwarded through the entire segment because Rhodes was just "killing time" at the start of the show.

"I fast-forwarded through the entire promo. What is Cody Rhodes possibly gonna say that's new? He's not gonna say anything that's new. He's eating time, guys. That's all it is. They've got the show segmented. Okay, segment one Cody Rhodes in-ring 20 minutes. All he's gonna do is go out there and eat 20 minutes of this show. He's not going to say anything that we did not already hear. He is not going to add to the story. He is not gonna tell another chapter of the story. He is not gonna bring the story to another level."

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Russo added that there was nothing new or different in Rhodes' tirade against Rollins.

"I did not listen to one word on the promo because I started watching the show an hour later. I already know, they've trained me to know he's gonna say nothing. Nothing is going to happen. The fans are gonna sing. So you know what? I'm gonna hold fast forward down on my remote control until we get through this segment. And that's exactly what I did."

Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins will collide in a singles match for the Men's Crown Jewel Championship at the namesake show on Saturday in Perth, Australia.

Please remember to embed the video and credit Sportskeeda for the transcription while using the quotes from this piece.

About the author

Prityush is a WWE news writer for Sportskeeda Wrestling who started watching wrestling in the later part of The Attitude Era. Although he holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Prityush was a creative writer for his college, and his flair for creativity and love of pro wrestling eventually led him to the journalism field. After an initial stint in 2016-2017, he has been writing regularly for Sportskeeda since 2021.

As someone who loves and respects the business, he prides himself on factual, clean, and ethical reporting, free of plagiarism and AI usage. One of the ways he ensures this is by transcribing videos that he reports on.

Prityush had the privilege of interviewing superstar Matt Hardy in his career so far. Although, his favorite wrestler is CM Punk, as he relates to his Straight Edge philosophy.

When he is not reporting news, he loves reading and collecting WWE action figures. He currently owns over 500 wrestling figures and merchandise.

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Edited by Prityush Haldar