The heel character of Seth Rollins has been relatively the same for over a year now. Rollins has accomplished a lot in that time with memorable feuds against Edge, Cesaro, Rey Mysterio and others. The move to Monday Night Raw in the brand split sees Rollins instantly working in the WWE Championship feud against Big E.
Rollins may have run his course with this character but because of the lack of credible challengers fans view him as a realistic threat to Big E. The gimmick feels a bit redundant now after months of doing the same thing. Rollins is viewed in that elite core of top stars with Roman Reigns, Drew McIntyre, Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch. Change may be needed for him to remain in that core as his importance is starting to falter.
Same Old Seth Rollins
The biggest problem with Seth Rollins’ character is that nothing has changed in a long time. Rollins’ most noteworthy character attributes are wearing outlandish outfits and doing his over-the-top laugh. Dozens of heels have done this schtick and almost anyone can skate by with it, which makes it being tied to a performer like Rollins even more frustrating.
To his credit, Rollins is still delivering in matches whenever he has an important bout. However, just about everyone on WWE’s roster is capable of good matches these days. Rollins is lacking the momentum and character direction to hit that top-level he views himself on with the likes of Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar.
Even the bolder segments like when Rollins broke into Edge’s home just featured more stale shenanigans of his maniacal laugh. The character was fun when it first started, but Rollins has been doing the same thing for way too long. No changes over his past few feuds have just hurt him from benefiting more afterward.
Seth Rollins Has Suffered Too Many Losses
WWE has booked Seth Rollins in a few noteworthy programs over the past year and a half, but his character runs into the same problem time after time. Most feuds involving Rollins must end with him losing since it relies on him getting cheap heat during the build. Rey Mysterio winning the long and ridiculous feud with Rollins was a must since Seth basically ripped his eye out as part of the story.
The recent program with Edge was one of the better rivalries from Rollins in recent memory. WWE however had to book Edge scoring the two bigger victories due to his overall importance going forward. Rollins did pick up a win over Edge, but it was during a Smackdown episode in between the bigger PPV bouts. The cheap tactics of Seth getting in Edge’s head meant that Edge had to win the feud or suffer from it.
Even the excitement for the upcoming WWE Championship match between Rollins and Big E is lesser than it would normally be. Rollins losing his recent programs and not being a realistic challenger to end Big E’s reign this early has fans already knowing the result. If the fans don’t buy a talent like Rollins having a chance to win a title match, a change is needed.
Seth Rollins Is In Danger Of Falling Down The Card
The recent ladder match between Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Finn Balor and Rey Mysterio was outstanding. However, a negative can be made that fans were somewhat upset about Rollins winning the title shot. Rollins at best felt on the same tier as the other three names in the match. There is nothing wrong with that in theory, but that core of talent is below the top tier of Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre in the WWE pecking order.
Rollins considers himself at the top of his class and WWE has tried to sell that. The career of Rollins has guaranteed him a spotlight like a Randy Orton who always has a good spot with marquee matches and noteworthy pushes. Roman is currently setting the blueprint on how to hold down a top spot and not give it up. Even when Reigns drops the Universal Championship, the product will see his programs feel like the main event.
The goal of Rollins is to be on that top tier of the faces of the company with Roman, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair. This version of his heel character is causing him to lose enough steam to fall beneath that level for the foreseeable future. Rollins is still in a great spot, but the risk of him treading water any longer could hurt his star power in a way he won't rebound from.