This week, the WWE will undergo its first roster shake-up since the WWE brand split draft last August. This means that a number of wrestlers will end up moved from one show to the other based on what is looking to end up as trades. While the original announcement by Vince McMahon made it sound like it would happen on "Monday Night Raw," wrestlers were told to be at "SmackDown Live" as well so it looks like it will be a two-night event.
"Monday Night Raw" rumors
The number one wrestler rumored to be leaving "Monday Night Raw" is Roman Reigns. However, there is little reason to believe that he will head to "SmackDown Live." For one thing, Roman is one of the top merchandise sellers in the WWE and is rumored to have just hit number one as a full-time wrestler since John Cena is a part-timer now.
Another problem is that Roman is rumored to be fighting Brock Lesnar at "WrestleMania 33" and that will be hard if the two stars are wrestling on different brands.
More legitimate options to move are names like Sami Zayn, Cesaro, The Club (Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows), The New Day, Charlotte Flair or Sasha Banks, and maybe someone like Finn Balor. These wrestlers could all use fresh scenery and would fit in better on "SmackDown Live" where the biggest point of emphasis is the wrestling rather than the entertainment factor. There is supposed to be a huge star moved from each brand, and since none of these are big stars, it leaves the idea open of Roman Reigns leaving "Monday Night Raw."
"SmackDown Live" rumors
The biggest name rumored to leave "SmackDown Live" is AJ Styles but the WWE threw a wrench in those plans when he showed his respect for Shane McMahon last week and said he didn't want to leave.
One idea is that the show of respect was to keep Styles on his preferred brand and then convince "SmackDown" to bring in The Club to reform and create a new faction now that the Wyatt Family is dead.
Another big WWE rumor is that "SmackDown Live" might trade John Cena and Nikki Bella to "Monday Night Raw." If anyone counts as a major name in the WWE, it is Cena.
If the WWE wants to send Roman Reigns to "SmackDown" but keeps AJ Styles, John Cena is perfect trade bait. As for other wrestlers that might be leaving "SmackDown," names like American Alpha, Alexa Bliss, The Miz and Maryse, and Mojo Rawley. The talent roster of "Monday Night Raw" is bigger than "SmackDown Live" but the in-ring talent seems to always gravitate to Tuesday nights.
