When The Shield made their debut in WWE, it was a moment that fans would never forget. Three guys that mainstream fans didn't know ran from the stands and beat down Ryback to help CM Punk retain his WWE Championship. However, the hired muscle ended up eclipsing even Punk in the eyes of fans, and they were an instant hit.
The three former NXT standouts ended up becoming WWE's biggest stars. All three men went on to win world titles, and all three still sit at the top of professional wrestling today. One in AEW and the other two in WWE, with Roman Reigns as possibly the biggest heel in the world. They were all superstars from their very first PPV appearances and had great matches often.
10 Dean Ambrose vs. Rob Van Dam (SummerSlam 2013)
SummerSlam 2013 was a disappointment for fans of The Shield. This was the only PPV of The Shield's first 10 where neither Roman Reigns nor Seth Rollins wrestled in a match. The only member who competed was Dean Ambrose, who put his United States Championship on the line against Rob Van Dam.
Even more disappointing was that this was on the pre-show, and Ambrose lost by DQ. It was the only time The Shield seemed irrelevant concerning WWE storylines.
9 The Shield vs. The Prime Time Players/Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler (Night of Champions 2013)
The Shield was back in the mix the month after SummerSlam 2013. This is because the faction hired themselves out to The Authority. Daniel Bryan beat John Cena for the WWE Championship, and Randy Orton cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase, and The Shield was there to ensure he kept it.
The Night of Champions PPV saw Ambrose beat Dolph Ziggler to retain his U.S. Title while Reigns and Rollins successfully defended their titles against The Prime Time Players in solid matches.
8 The Shield vs. Cody Rhodes and Goldust vs. The Usos/Dean Ambrose vs. Big E (Hell in a Cell 2013)
The Shield lost their tag team titles when Goldust & Cody Rhodes beat them on Raw. The titles were on the line at Hell in a Cell 2013 when the Rhodes Brothers defended them against The Shield and The Usos in a triple threat match, winning and retaining the titles in an underrated gem.
Ambrose put his U.S. Title on the line against Big E and lost, but it was by count-out, so he kept the title. While all Shield members lost, the matches were better than those at Night of Champions.
7 The Shield vs. Cody Rhodes and Goldust (Battleground 2013)
The feud between The Shield and the team of Goldust & Cody Rhodes started when The Shield was used by The Authority to prove a point. Triple H had fired Cody Rhodes and Goldust tried to get him rehired. They had a chance, but only if they could beat The Shield in a non-title match.
There was still a lot on the line. If Cody and Goldust won, Cody was reinstated. If The Shield won, Dusty Rhodes would be fired as a trainer at NXT, and Goldust would lose his job as well. The match went 13 minutes and the Rhodes family won in one of the best bouts of the night.
6 The Shield vs. Big Show, Randy Orton & Sheamus (WrestleMania 29)
The Shield made their WrestleMania debut at WrestleMania 29 in a six-man tag team match. Throughout their time together, The Shield had an almost unblemished record as a trios team. That stood the test at WrestleMania when they beat Big Show, Randy Orton & Sheamus.
This was the opening match after the pre-show, and it ended when Reigns hit Orton with a spear and Ambrose pinned him. The story here was that Big Show couldn't get his teammates to work together, and The Shield were all on the same page.
5 The Shield vs. Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton/Dean Ambrose vs. Kane (Payback 2013)
At Payback 2013, it was two matches for The Shield, with the first seeing Dean Ambrose beating Kane in a United States Championship defense by count-out. Later on in the show, it was time for The Shield to defend their tag titles against the unusual tag team of Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton.
The reason for the odd pairing was that Team Hell No had some issues, and Vickie Guerrero forced Orton and Bryan to team up. Rollins pinned Bryan to keep the titles.
4 The Shield vs. Ryback and Team Hell No (TLC 2012)
The Shield made their WWE debut when they attacked Ryback and hit the triple powerbomb through a table to keep him from beating CM Punk for the WWE Championship. This put them on Ryback's hit-list, but The Shield beat him every step of the way.
At TLC 2012, Ryback teamed up with Team Hell No (Daniel Bryan & Kane) to battle The Shield in a six-man match. This was a TLC Match, and The Shield won in their first match after putting all three opponents through tables and pinning Bryan.
3 The Shield vs. John Cena, Ryback & Sheamus (Elimination Chamber 2013)
Even when Ryback had one of the best wrestlers of all-time as a partner, he couldn't get one over on The Shield. At Elimination Chamber 2013, it was The Shield vs. John Cena, Ryback & Sheamus.
The match saw the babyfaces getting in a lot of offense, but when it came time for the end, The Shield got Cena out of the ring and distracted so Roman Reigns could spear Ryback and pin him for the win.
2 The Shield vs. The Usos/Dean Ambrose in MitB (Money in the Bank 2013)
Money in the Bank 2013 had The Shield involved in the Money in the Bank Ladder Match for the first time, as Dean Ambrose took part. This was the MitB match where Damien Sandow shocked the world and won before going on to fail in his attempt to capture the world title.
Reigns and Rollins also put their tag titles on the line on the pre-show, beating The Usos in a hard-fought match that went nearly 15 minutes and helped put The Usos on the map.
1 The Shield vs. Team Hell No/Dean Ambrose vs. Kofi Kingston (Extreme Rules 2013)
The best matches for The Shield at their first 10 PPV appearances came at Extreme Rules 2013. This is where the faction truly became stars. Before this, The Shield was tearing through wrestlers but had yet to prove themselves on the big stage.
All three members got title shots at Extreme Rules. Dean Ambrose beat Kofi Kingston to win the United States Championship, and then Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins beat Team Hell No in a Tornado tag team match to win the tag titles.