Veteran NFL writer and Pat McAfee Show contributor Mark Kaboly breaks down SmackDown’s USA Network premiere with 20 quick-hitting thoughts.
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Big fight feel There have been more than 1300 episodes of SmackDown over the past 25 years, but it’s hard to remember one that had this kind of vibe. It had the star power, the atmosphere, the bloodshed and the results of what you would expect from a PLE.
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Reigns or Rhodes? Roman Reigns hasn’t had a match since WrestleMania XL and has only been seen a handful of times since his return. He doesn’t have a title or a faction around him now, but my feeling based on everything that happened during SmackDown is that Reigns surpassed Cody Rhodes in terms of being No. 1 with the fans … or at least close.
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Solo Sikoa’s dilemma For such a powerful leader of the top faction in WWE, Solo Sikoa sure doesn’t win many matches. His only title reign was with the WWE NXT North American Championship, which was two years ago and lasted only a week. The lack of winning is strange to me.
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Low-key performance of the night Even though Sikoa lost again, he put together a strong and powerful Cage Match against Rhodes. Sikoa controlled a lot of this match and hit some big spots with my personal favorite being a tossup between the suplex off the top rope and the powerbomb into the cage.
Kevin Owens reveals his surprise tag team partner as Randy Orton to take out A-Town Down Under. Catch WWE action on Peacock, WWE Network, USA Network, Sony India and more. #SmackDown
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Line of the night Michael Cole about the hairy back of Kevin Owens’ short-lived tag partner Ricky: “Is that George ‘The Animal’ Steele’s son?”
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KO never fails Kevin Owens always delivers. You can count on that every single time he steps in the ring and he owned the match with Randy Orton against A-Town Down Under.
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All wrestling The first hour of the program barely had a promo other than a quick backstage with SmackDown GM Nick Aldis and that was necessary to set up the end of the show. No promos for half a show was unusual, but also gave it a PLE feel.
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Sucker for nostalgia Hey, some may have thought it was corny, but seeing past Superstars at ringside was a nice touch that gave SmackDown an even bigger feel. Seeing Legends like Rob Van Dam, Booker T, and Vickie Guerrero is never a bad thing.
Andrade takes on Carmelo Hayes in a high-stakes battle to determine the No. 1 Contender to LA Knight’s U.S. Title. Catch WWE action on Peacock, WWE Network, USA Network, Sony India and more. #SmackDown
Golf clap for Austin Theory I am a sucker for overselling Stunners. I enjoy it. Theory may have just entered my all-time list on that Stunner Owens administered.
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A Ricky return? At least one more time. Why not?
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Smart move Having your biggest SmackDown stars start and end the show gave you no choice but to stick around for the duration. Top to bottom, SmackDown delivered one of its most complete shows of the year, blending storytelling with big-time players and a good in-ring product.
