Eric Bischoff didn’t expect to spend the latest episode of 83 Weeks agreeing with one of the harshest Roman Reigns takes you’ll ever hear. Neither did Conrad Thompson.
It all started when Conrad dropped a take he admitted would probably annoy a lot of wrestling fans. Then he doubled down. Conrad argued that Roman isn’t the top star because fans made him one. He believes WWE made that decision years ago and spent so long pushing Reigns that audiences eventually accepted it.
“I’m going to give you a hot take that’s going to annoy you and probably piss you off, but here goes. I think Roman Reigns is probably the most overrated main event in WWE history. Roman Reigns is what music would call an industry plant. I don’t think if Roman Reigns disappears tomorrow, WWE’s fortune changes at all.”
In Conrad’s eyes, WWE did exactly what Triple H has said the company doesn’t want to do today. He admitted The Bloodline changed everything for a while, but thinks that story has now run its course.
“They pushed him so hard against the grain. Down our throats is the phrase that Triple H would use about why they’re not pushing Bron Breakker. Well, they pushed Roman down our throats forever. We had a good storyline with the Bloodline, but now that the Bloodline is sort of… it feels like it’s into its black and silver era of the nWo. It’s kind of like, eh, it was a fun moment in time, but it’s time to move on.”
Conrad also questioned whether Reigns has ever produced the kind of defining moments fans normally associate with wrestling’s biggest stars. Then came the comparison that will probably get people talking, as he compared Roman to Goldberg.
“I don’t know that anybody could say here’s my favorite Roman Reigns match… How many people list a Roman Reigns match? How many people list their favorite promo ever as a Roman Reigns promo? He just flies in, takes 12 minutes to get to the ring, wrestles kind of the same match, does it really, really slow, gets his hand raised, and he moves on. He’s Goldberg. If Goldberg worked more than 10 minutes.”
After hearing all of that, Conrad turned to Eric Bischoff expecting an argument. Instead, he got one sentence, as Bischoff said: “I agree.” Even Conrad sounded caught off guard.
Bischoff said people often assume he’ll defend everything WWE does simply because he usually looks at the company from a business perspective. He says that’s never stopped him from criticizing things he disagrees with.
“Okay. Well… I know that’s not what you’re expecting because apparently people think that I support everything WWE, which is clearly not the case, but I give an honest opinion and I look at things from a business perspective… But there are things like this that I just shake my head at.”
Calling Roman Reigns overrated isn’t exactly a new debate. Hearing Eric Bischoff immediately agree that he might be the most overrated main-event star in WWE history is. Whether fans agree with the criticism or think it completely misses the mark, it’s the kind of take that’s guaranteed to get people talking.
Do you agree with Conrad Thompson and Eric Bischoff, or do you think Roman Reigns has earned his place as one of WWE’s defining main-event stars? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Please credit Ringside News if you use the above transcript in your publication.
