2020 was a highly unusual year for WWE talent, to say the least. The usual wild world of wrestling was thrown into chaos by the pandemic and shutdowns which caused a massive cut of talent in the spring. It also prevented several workers (Bobby Roode, Sami Zayn, almost all of NXT UK) from traveling and thus competing. Toss in the usual injuries that come up without warning and it’s tempting to cut WWE a break on not properly using some workers this year.

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But others don’t have that excuse. WWE has so much great talent this year that they simply did not use properly. The sadder cases are those who had scores of promise earlier in the year but somehow fell apart. There is a chance some can recover but these are ten top cases of wrestlers WWE badly underused in 2020 as a reminder that creative can drop the ball a lot.

10 Mustafa Ali

Mustafa Ali WWE

For most of 2020, Mustafa Ali was absent for both injury and personal issues. He had a good push in the summer with the idea that he was the mysterious "SmackDown hacker” but that was dropped. His partnership with Ricochet was also promising.

Then, with no warning, WWE made him the leader of Retribution and he was soon on Main Event fighting the Gobbledy Gooker. Maybe 2021 is better as this year wasn’t the best use of Ali.

9 Rhea Ripley

If anyone looked like they were going to have a great 2020, Rhea Ripley did. She started out having ended Shayna Bazler’s epic NXT Women’s Title reign and the promise of a great run. Then WWE decided NXT needed Charlotte, who ended Ripley’s reign at Wrestlemania.

Her only notable feud was with Robert Stone, and she went from captain of a female WarGames team to just another member. It’s astounding just how fast WWE cut the legs off a very promising female champion.

8 Ricochet

ricochet

For a guy long loved by indie fans, Ricochet hasn’t connected in WWE. The former North American and United States Champion had a good showcase helping Drew McIntyre eliminate Brock Lesnar in the Royal Rumble.

But his partnership with Cedric Alexander was just the excuse for Alexander to turn heel and join the Hurt Business. It really looks like the man is on his way to getting buried and it’s sad that Ricochet has been a misfire for WWE.

7 Drew Gulak

Drew Gulak WWE

Maybe Drew Gulak is regretting his decision to resign with WWE in May. The year started out fine as Gulak looked terrific in his feud with Daniel Bryan that turned into a partnership. He had shots at the Intercontinental Title and held his own with AJ Styles.

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Somehow, over the summer, it went wrong from Gulak just commentating to a long series of comedy skits chasting the 24/7 Title. This guy should be a top midcard player but WWE has been wasting him since his return.

6 Cesaro

Cesaro Wins Andre Royal

It’s almost become a tradition for Cesaro to end up on “most overlooked” lists. Yet again, WWE doesn’t seem to know what to do with the “Swiss Superman.” He was the odd man in the partnership of Shinsuke Nakamura and Sami Zayn and seemed uncomfortable in the part.

True, he and Nakamura had a run as SmackDown Tag Team Champions but it was short and hardly stellar. It’s downright frustrating to see WWE failing to realize the star Cesaro could be.

5 Chelsea Green

Chelsea Green WWE

It appeared Chelsea Green might be connecting with fans as she was a highlight of the no-crowd NXT shows. The arrogant heel was rising up with a spot in a ladder match and her partnership with Robert Stone seemed promising.

Related: 10 WWE Women Who Won Major Titles In Other Promotions

The plan seemed to be her getting a push when she jumped to RAW but Paul Heyman’s departure hurt that. Instead, Green was immediately lost in the mix, not debuting until November where she broke her wrist in a fatal four-way match. It’s a shame Green’s promise hasn’t been fulfilled yet.

4 Chad Gable

Thankfully, it looks like this might finally be corrected but that doesn’t make up for what WWE did to poor Chad Gable. The former tag team champion looked to be doing okay but then got saddled with the horrible “Shorty G'' character.

It was a complete joke and not helped by a long losing streak, constantly beaten up by others, and a lousy heel turn. It did build to him dumping the name to go back to Gable so hopefully, 2021 sees Chad getting a much better shake from WWE.

3 The Riott Squad

Riott Squad

As 2020 started, Liv Morgan had a decent push with a new look but then got stuck in the terrible Lana/Rusev/Lashley storyline. Ruby Riott returned from injury to attack her and set up a possible feud. Then Sarah Logan was cut and Riott entered a long losing streak.

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She and Morgan (now back to her old look) reunited but the Squad has been used as filler for other women. Both ladies have serious potential to be stars and at least tag champions rather than wasted so much.

2 Akira Tozawa

The former Cruiserweight Champion should be a bigger deal in WWE. He is terrifically skilled and a good look so working in NXT or 205 Live can be a good job for him. WWE’s genius idea has been sticking him with a pack of ninjas to win the 24/7 Title from R-Truth a few times.

As a comedy act, it wasn’t much other than a waste of Tozawa’s fine talents. There are some other cruiserweights who can be doing better but Tozawa is one of the bigger examples of a guy stuck in a rut.

1 Aleister Black

Aleister Black

Aleister Black seemed like one guy who could break the "NXT star turned main roster flop" cycle. The former NXT Champion has the goods in his looks and charisma to easily take off. Instead, he was stuck in a rough feud with Seth Rollins, taking time off before coming back with a supposedly injured eye.

While that seemed to have promise and a feud with Kevin Owens, Black still seems lost since going to SmackDown. This guy should be a top-level player rather than wasted on the lower card like this.

Next: WWE: 10 Most Controversial Matches Of 2020