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Sometimes injuries can be a blessing in disguise, and only time will tell with Cody Rhode' pectoral injury. On the surface it looks like a nightmare for the American Nightmare; at the peak of popularity, after defeating Seth Rollins at Hell in a Cell, he was forced to get surgery and might be out for up to nine months.

Cody was seen as the best candidate to dethrone Roman Reigns for one (or both) of his championships and start a new era in WWE, but now WWE must consider different options, at least as a holdover until Cody can make his triumph return where his popularity will be even stronger after being away for so long. WWE has done a poor job over the years developing credible contenders outside of Brock Lesnar to have a serious chance of defeating Reigns, but there are a couple options that could realistically work.

Riddle sad WWE

After losing the tag team championships and his tag partner Randy Orton to injury, Riddle is perfectly primed for a strong singles run. Orton's injury is being attributed to The Bloodline, so Riddle has made it his mission to avenge Orton by pursuing the Tribal Chief for his top prizes, The WWE and Universal Championships.

While Riddle is red-hot with the new, edgy, serious side he is displaying, it still feels like he is not ready to be the top man in the company. After all, he still has one more feud lingering in the shadows that he will need to address before he can finally break the glass ceiling of super stardom, the expected heel turn by Orton when he returns.

Related: Details On Why WWE Is Running Roman Reigns vs. Riddle On SmackDown [Report]

Drew McIntyre Has Been A Dependable Part Of Raw And SmackDown For Years

Roman Reigns v Drew McIntyre Survivor Series 2020 Cropped

Unlike Riddle, Drew McIntyre has already proven that he can be the top babyface in WWE and flourish. Even more impressive, his crowing victory to win the Universal Championship against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 36 occurred during the Covid era, where he did not have a live audience to feed of. Despite that massive hurdle, McIntyre found success, with his lengthy feud with Orton drawing praise from fans.

Furthermore, McIntyre has two things going for him; unfinished business with Reigns after their match at Survivor Series in 2020, and that oversized, muscular look that Vince McMahon and company love so much. Even with his recent booking pushing him down the card a few pegs, McIntyre is fairly protected and just needs one moment to cut a fiery promo that kickstarts a campaign to defeat Reigns.

Related: Every Drew McIntyre Title Reign In WWE, Ranked

Bobby Lashley Has A Rubber Match Waiting With Roman Reigns

bobby-lashley-roman-reigns

Though it may appear like Bobby Lashley is starting a feud with Theory over the United States Championship, if the rumors speak any truth, then expect John Cena's return to involve Theory. Lashley will need to find a new dance partner. Similar to McIntyre, Lashley has the looks of a WWE Superstar and has had prior interactions with Reigns. Back in 2018, when Lashley returned to WWE, he quickly shot to the top of the card in a feud with Reigns. He picked up a PPV win against Reigns clean at Extreme Rules before losing a rematch on Raw a few weeks later. They never got a trilogy match to settle the feud, and now that Lashley has dropped MVP and turned babyface, the timing could not be better to pair these two behemoths for a slobber knocker.

One glaring problem might just be Lashley himself. After turning babyface and going solo, his character has felt flat at times. The years with MVP as his mouthpiece has exposed Lashley's character as one dimensional and shown his limitations on the mic. If Reigns and Paul Heyman can carry the bulk of the promotion for the feud then this might work, but until then, Lashley needs to develop his mic skills (or find a new manager) to evolve his character.

Bonus Wildcard: There Are Rumors That The Fiend/Bray Wyatt May Return To WWE

Fiend v Strowman v Reigns Payback 2020

Let's not kid ourselves, because it is pointless. With rumors and tweets hinting at the return of The Fiend/Bray Wyatt to professional wrestling, naturally a WWE return crosses the mind of wrestling fans. And why shouldn't it? The Fiend was the catalyst for a Roman Reigns heel turn, but he never got a rematch with Reigns for a chance to win back the Universal Championship. In addition, out of the four men mentioned, The Fiend is the biggest superstar of them all, so if WWE can afford to bring him back, they should do it quickly.