DR. TNA: 5 Guys TNA Must Push Even After “They” Arrive

Columns, Top Story

If you have watched TNA the last couple weeks you know that the threat of “they” has returned.  Not the “they” who turned out to be Immortal.  In fact, new “they” (?) is actually coming for old “they” (Immortal) and new “they” will arrive February 3rd.

Even the haters have got to grant TNA that they are promoting this well.  Following the Matt Hardy debut and the Mr. Anderson title match, we heard a lot of criticism over the lack of promotion for these two events.  Frankly, that criticism was at least somewhat deserved.  The lack of promotion for Matt Hardy’s debut I can attribute to wanting a surprise for the PPV.  However, the Heavyweight Title changing hands without fans knowing there would even be a match is not a method for success that this doctor would prescribe.

However, I say again, this doesn’t not seem to be a mistake that TNA made with old “they” or is making with new “they.”  The issue will be whether the developments live up to the hype.  Some of my colleagues have written everything from speculation to what I believe are spoilers, as to who will be revealed as the new “they.”  If this is of interest to you, I encourage to you browse Inside Pulse and check them out.

I’m going stay away from those.  While I know that TNA does not run live shows each week, I generally have stayed away from the spoilers while watching, so for the purposes of this column, I try to do the same.  That said, I have cheated along the way and checked out spoilers, so I can’t judge any of you for doing the same.

Regardless of who “they” are, I believe it is fair to assume that if “they” are taking on Immortal, we are discussing wrestlers who will not be minor players.  With this in mind, outside of guys like Jeff Hardy and RVD, who are obvious, below are my 5 wrestlers who TNA must continue to push, even if they are not a part of old “they” or new “they.”  (Confused yet?)

The Pope D ‘Angelo Dinero

I continue to believe that the Pope is one of the best talents that TNA has in its locker room.  The guy is athletic, great on a mic, and the crowd loves him.  He seems to be taking a bit of a heel turn right now in his feud with Samoa Joe.  That’s not a bad thing.  Honestly, it is probably more challenging to be an effective heel and he is one of the guys that can pull it off.  Face or heel, the Pope needs to be a fixture in main events very soon.

The Blueprint Matt Morgan

TNA needed Matt Morgan to deliver in a big way following Mr. Anderson’s injury and he made the most of the opportunity he was given.  The physical tools have always been there for Morgan.  The man is built like an NBA power forward who decided he wanted to play defensive end in the NFL.  What had previously been missing was his appeal, broadly, with the fans.  He seems to have broken through that in a big way.  TNA has been pushing his invincibility as of late in an almost “Bill Goldberg” type manner.  I hope it continues.

Motor City Machine Guns

Yes, I know these are two men and yes for the purposes of this column I will be counting them as one.  This tag team is just plain fun to watch.  I admit that when I first came back to watching wrestling, I was not immediately sold on the MCMGs.  I never questioned their talent. I just didn’t really think the out of ring presence was there.  While I still think there is room for improvement on the mic, I’m admitting I was wrong.  These guys work like a machine gun in the ring with the rapid fire attacks and the crowd loves them.  I’m not sure they would be ready for a successful heel push, but they need to remain in Tag Title matches.

Mr. Anderson

This may seem like an odd name to include given that he is currently the Heavyweight Champion.  I include it out of an abundance of caution.  Within TNA, Mr. Anderson’s mic skills can only be rivaled by the Pope.  In the ring he has proven more than capable at competing in highly competitive and demanding matches.  Yet, he has just now become a Heavyweight Champion.  I’d like to believe my including him is completely unnecessary.  However, if he is not on this list now and later falls out of favor with TNA booking, I feel I’ll lack credibility complaining at that point.  Given that, he makes the list.

A.J. Styles

I’m dumbfounded that I even need to include him.  However, have you seen him in many main events lately?  Yes, I know he is injured.  However, this predates the injury.  Styles is a big enough name that he doesn’t need to continually hold the Heavywieght Title.  That is not what I’m advocating.  However, it is time to move him out to the Ric Flair 2.0 role he’s been in for a while now.  It appears that TNA may have been shifting him on the outs with Immortal/Fortune.  Let’s hope that continues.

OK, so who did I miss?  I suspect Samoa Joe will be the first name I see.  There is certainly an argument to be made for him.  I believe these 5 are more important to push, but I grant you the argument.  Anyone else?