Road Dogg is no longer just a name being talked about for TNA. He has now been spotted at Slammiversary.
Ahead of tonight’s TNA Slammiversary event in Boston, PWInsider noted that former WWE SmackDown writer Brian “Road Dogg” James was seen at the show. He is expected to officially start with TNA in a backstage role.
That comes at a very interesting time, because TNA is already dealing with a major backstage shift. Tommy Dreamer is gone as head of creative, and there has been talk that Road Dogg could end up joining the creative team.
At first, James was said to have been pitched as a producer. Now, with Dreamer out, his role could be bigger than that. Delirious and Eric Tompkins are expected to work closely on creative going forward, but Road Dogg being in Boston will only crank up talk that another former WWE name is entering the room.
There is also the WWE and TNA connection to think about. Road Dogg has a close relationship with Johnny Russo, NXT’s head writer, and that could help with the ongoing NXT-TNA relationship if James becomes part of the backstage setup.
Dave Meltzer previously shared that someone in WWE had a positive view of what Road Dogg could bring to TNA. The source pointed to his basic approach to booking and how he works with talent.
“One person in WWE noted to me that James was a ‘very fundamentals style booker, which would do that product a lot of good. He’s enthusiastic when he deals with talent, which is also a positive.’”
The update here is simple: Road Dogg was talked about for TNA, and now he is actually at Slammiversary. That makes the timing hard to ignore, especially with Dreamer leaving and TNA needing to settle its creative direction fast.
Do you think Road Dogg will help TNA’s creative direction, or is this the wrong move after Tommy Dreamer’s exit? Drop your thoughts in the comments and let us know.
