Seth Rollins stood out during SmackDown’s star-studded main event

Cody Rhodes has enough fans that they derailed WWE’s (or perhaps I should say TKO’s) plans for WrestleMania XL. Roman Reigns & The Rock’s supporters are well-represented on this site, as our most prolific op-ed writer rarely misses a chance to sing The Bloodline’s praises. And Drew McIntyre is pretty much everyone’s favorite pro wrestling character right now.

So I thought I’d take a few hundred words to sing the praises of other person in the main event mix for April 7-8 in Philadelphia… WWE World Heavyweight champion Seth Freakin’ Rollins.

After being blown away by Rollins’ promo on Feb. 12 Raw, Seth Freakin’ faded into the background a bit. He came out of an exchange with McIntyre about as well as anyone does these days — which is to say, wondering where the heel this version of Drew came from. But like many, I did more cringing than cheering when Rollins’ big moment was deciding he’d call The Rock, “Diarrhea Dwayne”.

It felt like the kind of unnatural line WWE stars have been scripted to say under previous regimes (cough “Sufferin’ Succotash” cough). It also made Seth seem like he might be outclassed by the people he’s working with, especially considering one of them is among the best microphone men in the history of the business.

But maybe we were too hasty to judge. Because during the final segment of SmackDown last night (Mar. 8), while sharing the ring with Reigns, Rhodes & Rock as WWE put the finishing touches on the set-up for what Triple H calls “the biggest tag match ever”, the Dallas crowd made Rocky take a beat as they chanted “Diarrhea”. Rollins didn’t even do anything to prompt it, but he and everyone except for Cody did seem to get a kick out it.

It wasn’t the first instance of Texas not being able to contain their enthusiasm for WWE’s other World champ. Rollins’ was the only entrance music not played during the ten or so minutes it took to get everyone into the ring. So the American Airlines Center crowd sang it for him before the promos finally began.

Seth didn’t get a ton of time to talk last night, but he maximized his minutes. In between telling Dwayne to stop running his mouth and accepting The Bloodline’s challenge for a night one tag match, Rollins delivered what some have called the line of the night when he called Rock, “Mr. Mid-Life Crisis”.

Accurate, and an actual shot landed on The Great One. But I actually thought the follow-up was better, as Seth found a new way to hammer home a point he’s been making since before Rock’s return was even official: “You had your time. You damn sure can’t have ours.”

In the long-run, Rock’s “mistake” jab* and Cody’s slap will probably be what gets replayed. Even Roman’s outdated shot** at Seth regarding his fashion choices might get more play than his former Shield brother’s performance.

We’ll see, and everyone. But after a crucial segment featuring a ring full of future Hall of Famers, Seth Freakin’ Rollins was the one whose night I’ll remember.

* Even though Johnson has his facts wrong, and may have actually been thinking about his own family.

** I’m not “outraged” and I know I’ll be called “soft” for even bringing it up. But I’m more than okay with that. It wasn’t some great line (it’s impossible to know, but it comes across like an ad-lib even Roman wished he could take back after saying it), so if it’s hurtful to people whose existence has been dismissed and mocked by insults like it, why not come up with a better one? Heel or no, it wasn’t good.