WWE RAW Flops and Hits: Roman Reigns sends The Usos with a master plan, another tag team to split up? (11th October 2021)

WWE RAW had a decent show lined up for fans this week. We saw the King of the Ring and Queen's Crown tournaments get underway on the Red brand, surprise appearances, and brutal brawls.

At the same time, there were a couple of underwhelming matches scheduled for the night. Bobby Lashley's promo for Goldberg and Jeff Hardy's match being interrupted by wrestlers chasing the 24/7 title did no favors.

Here, we look at some of the biggest flops and hits from this week's WWE RAW. So, without further ado, let's begin.

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#5 Hit on WWE RAW: Big E and Drew McIntyre turn foes, Roman Reigns sends The Usos on a mission

The opening segment of WWE RAW this week saw Big E and Drew McIntyre involved in a conversation about their upcoming title match scheduled for Crown Jewel.

McIntyre understandably pointed out that despite enjoying a prolonged title reign, he never got to celebrate in front of fans, and he is now chasing that moment. While Big E sympathized with his challenger, he also said that The Scottish Warrior wouldn't steal his gold.

Before their conversation could take a heated turn, The Usos made a surprise appearance and challenged them for a tag team match. They said that Roman Reigns had sent them on a mission to cause more conflict between Big E and Drew McIntyre.

The Usos also brought up Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods to further challenge the world champion's morale. Reigns hoped it would impact both superstars' momentum on WWE RAW. They shared healthy respect between themselves, but The Tribal Chief wanted to take away that sense of security.

Thus, Jey and Jimmy Uso worked hard to push them in opposite directions. It was necessary from their point of view as McIntyre is expected to challenge Reigns for the Universal Championship if he can't win the WWE Championship at Crown Jewel.

Moreover, Big E will likely be Roman Reigns' opponent at Survivor Series. It wasn't the best idea on the show tonight, but its execution was beyond perfect on WWE RAW.

All four superstars delivered a brilliant match that allowed each of them to play to their respective strengths. Big E wanted to lead the way as he is familiar with The Usos. Jey and Jimmy Uso used it to their advantage and kept him isolated for a long time during the match. McIntyre was desperate to get inside the ring while Big E took all the punishment on WWE RAW.

The Usos showed why they are one of the best tag teams to have ever graced the ring and delivered incredible performances against two ferocious opponents. Drew McIntyre and Big E looked equally strong, but the growing tension between the two superstars was evident on WWE RAW.

They started brawling with each other, which resulted in their loss via countout. Following that, Jimmy and Jey Uso, manhandled their opponents and destroyed most of the set. But the babyfaces managed to get the better of The Usos before The Scottish Warrior hit the Claymore Kick on the WWE Champion.

This match did well in making both McIntyre and Big E look strong. It could also lead to both superstars making an appearance on SmackDown later this week. Could we see the two team up with Brock Lesnar to face Roman Reigns and The Usos?

They might want to answer The Tribal Chief and his cousins. While it would make for a blockbuster setup, it would be difficult to bring them on the same page after the way they attacked each other tonight on WWE RAW.

This week's SmackDown will run for an extended time period and engage in a head-to-head competition with AEW Rampage. After Tony Khan's public challenge, one can't rule out the possibility of WWE booking a big match between six megastars on their show.

#4 Flop on WWE RAW: Mustafa Ali and Mansoor to split up?

This week, one of the tag team matches on WWE RAW saw Mustafa Ali and Mansoor take on newly reunited Hurt Business members, Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander.

The blame entirely lies with the creative team, who didn't give either of the two teams enough time to showcase their in-ring prowess. Although Ali and Mansoor did most with whatever little time they had, Benjamin and Alexander eventually emerged victoriously.

Following the match, Ali pushed Mansoor and left him inside the ring. They have always had slight tension between them, but it appears that the two are set to go their separate ways this time. Isn't it a rushed way to set up a singles match at Crown Jewel?

Both superstars were doing well as a tag team and could have gone a long way on WWE RAW (and SmackDown once Draft 2021 came in effect) but are now facing a potential split. Mustafa Ali even attacked Mansoor backstage to prove how he is better than his tag team partner.

Benjamin and Alexander's victory looked slightly underwhelming. They should've never split up in the first place, but now that they are back, things should work out well for both superstars on WWE RAW.

We hope to see them involved in better tag team matches that truly test their chemistry and in-ring partnership. It's no secret that WWE's tag team division has grown stagnant, and it is essential that the creative team doesn't lose every opportunity to build up more tag teams as credible challengers.

#3 Hit on WWE RAW: Xavier Woods advances to the semi-finals of King of the Ring tournament

This week on WWE RAW, Xavier Woods kickstarted his hunt for the Crown with a match against Ricochet. It was precisely the battle that one would expect between two performers who are as agile as Woods and Ricochet. Both superstars battled all across the canvas and orchestrated several jaw-dropping spots.

It was a well-balanced encounter that saw them take turns to dominate the match on WWE RAW. Ricochet subjected Woods to a brutal suplex off the top turnbuckle.

On the other hand, the New Day member stomped on his opponent's spine while the latter rested on the top rope. It was an eventful in-ring meeting that day eventually ended with Xavier Woods picking up a big victory.

Woods is one of the hot favorites to win the King of the Ring tournament this year. He has excellent momentum on his side, and fans are actively backing him to go all the way to the finish line. It was the perfect start to his campaign, and he will look to make the most of this opportunity. He will now face Jinder Mahal in the semi-finals after the Modern Day Maharaja picked up a big win over Kofi Kingston.

As for Ricochet, this match showed us why he deserves to be in the spotlight more often. Despite losing, he looked equally strong, and, if anything, he made Woods' victory look all the more credible on WWE RAW. We hope that he will get more opportunities on SmackDown after Crown Jewel.

#2 Flop on WWE RAW: Both first-round matches for Queen's Crown tournament

Shayna Baszler returned to action on WWE RAW this week for a singles match against Dana Brooke in the first round of the Queen's Crown tournament. It was a brief and underwhelming encounter that predictably ended with Baszler's victory.

We hardly saw anything of substance, barring a couple of spots that showed how vicious Baszler could be inside the ring. However, a match that lasts only a couple of minutes barely does anything to make either of the two challengers look promising.

Later in the night, Doudrop and Natalya faced each other in the other first-round match of the Queen's Crown tournament. Once again, it was an extremely short bout that barely saw either of the two superstars do anything meaningful inside the ring. There was nothing noteworthy from this match on WWE RAW between missed shots and '‘surprise'’ roll-up pinfall.

Things were the same on SmackDown last week, and one can't be blamed for doubting the seriousness of the Queen's Crown tournament. The creative team must ensure that the upcoming semi-final matches on WWE RAW and the Blue brand make up for these underwhelming performances and deliver an intense battle to help restore the tournament's credibility.

#1 Hit on WWE RAW: Chaotic tag team match featuring champions

While the aforementioned women’s matches on WWE RAW were disappointing, one tag team bout did justice to a high-profile booking. As per the initial plan, Women’s Champions Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair had to team up to take on Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair.

All four superstars have been involved in a conflict since the Draft, and three of them have been feuding for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.

As expected, all hell broke loose as soon as all four women stepped inside the ring. They didn’t care about the tag team match. Instead, they were focused on annihilating each other, which ultimately forced Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville to come out and restore order.

The match finally started on WWE RAW, but the tension between the two tag teams was beyond evident. They were slapping their partners instead of tagging them in, and neither of the two teams could function well.

Their brawl gave us good spots, and it was one of the most genuinely intense encounters that we have seen on WWE RAW over the last few weeks. Unfortunately, the match ended in no contest when Belair and Banks started fighting among themselves.

Bianca Belair and Sasha Banks will challenge Becky Lynch for the SmackDown Women’s Championship at Crown Jewel, but they will have to keep an eye out for Charlotte Flair, who wants to get her hands on both titles.