0 of 7
Credit: WWE.com
With the payout room of the extermination room on February 21, this week’s show has been all about building the event and the feud that will make up the card.
Roman Reigns promised us a big announcement about the universal title this week, but after Kevin Owens surprised him with a Stunner last week, The Tribal Chief had to keep an eye on him.
This week was the return of Seth Rollins for the first time since the Survivor Series to the blue brand after appearing during the Royal Rumble contest for men.
What did Reigns have to say about the Universal Championship? What is the Messiah planning now that he is back? Did Edge or Bianca Belair pick their WrestleMania opponent?
Let’s take a look at everything that happened in this week’s episode of SmackDown.
Updates will start after the first segment / game. Be sure to reload this page for live results.
1 of 7
Reigns, Paul Heyman and Jey Uso appeared at the top of the show. Adam Pearce waits in the ring with a band. Reigns told Pearce he has no authority over the champion and he is only there to wait for him.
The tribal chief has said he will retire Edge if they eventually fight WrestleMania. He promised to keep the title as long as he wanted, before asking about the extermination room.
Pearce told him he has a contract stating that Reigns will defend the Universal Championship in the Extermination Chamber. Heyman took over and said Pearce Reigns would only defend the title at the PPV, but he would not do so inside the room.
Pearce said he would think about it, but Uso and Owens would meanwhile be in qualifying matches for a spot in the room. Reigns came into Pearce’s face, but eventually left without doing anything violent.
Grade: B-
Analysis
It was a solid segment, but it reveals nothing we did not know yet. We knew there would be qualifying matches and we knew Reigns would somehow defend the title at the PPV.
The tribal chief is excellent in this role, but this segment borders on repetitive. We’ve seen him hold his authority with Pearce before, and it’s no new ground.
The turn of Uso that could possibly earn a place in the room was the most interesting thing to get out of here. Heyman, Reigns and Pearce were all good, but this segment was almost unnecessary.
2 of 7
Sonya Deville played a match with Sami Zayn and Baron Corbin who took on Rey and Dominik Mysterio in a room-thinning for both members of the winning team.
Zayn presented a promotion before the game that ended with him being photographed by father and son. The ref asked for the bell and The King started fighting with Rey. Zayn tripped Rey, so Dom hit him with a suicide dive that almost ended with the young Superstar crashing into the announcement table.
We returned from a break to see Rey try to fight back against Corbin. Dom and Zayn signed in and the younger Mysterio hit a nice tornado DDT for an almost fall.
Corbin takes the 619 from both opponents, but Zayn eventually hits Dom with a Helluva kick for the pin and the win.
Grade: B-
Analysis
Seeing how a father and son work together in a WWE ring is always nice, but when it comes to this feud, WWE must put a fork in it, because it should have been done by now.
Corbin fought both Mysterios in singles and match matches, without having a meaningful storyline behind him so many times, that it is almost too obvious that no one has an idea what to do with the Mysterios now.
Zayn’s promotion before the game was as good as you would expect. He’s amazing at making a nothing match look like a major event because he’s so passionate about his delivery.
As for the fight, all four of the guys did a decent job. Winning Zayn and Corbin was also the right call. Dominik is not ready for a match like the room.
3 of 7
Big E was set to issue an open challenge for the IC title when Apollo Crews arrived. The champion told him he did not get a shot again after failing so many times, so Shinsuke Nakamura got the chance.
Crew members stayed at the ring to watch Big E take control after the break. He hit Nakamura on the apron with a pair of forearms and a splash. Crews climbed on the apron for a distraction and Nakamura took advantage with a header.
The Rockstar hit a flying knee from the middle rope for a double. Big E planted him with a urinagi for another fall. While Big E was willing to hit his finishes, Crews gave a kick to cause a disqualification.
Grade: C +
Analysis
It was a short game, and not the Superstar in question had enough time to make it more than an average encounter. What mattered was what came next.
Crews have been teasing a heel for weeks, but it finally happened Friday when he hit Big E with the dropkick. Now Crews has to prove he can be a convincingly bad guy.
Big E and Crews have good chemistry, but they already had five title games in 2021. If this feud continues, it should end soon.
4 of 7
The entire SmackDown series was on the verge of achieving Rollins’ return promotion. He talked about how fatherhood changed him in ways he did not expect.
He said he now realizes he’s the great leader SmackDown needs to make it great. It was then that the whole grid began to walk away. The lights came on and he realized the only person left was Cesaro, but even he eventually walked away.
Rollins pinched Cesaro’s knee as he walked down the driveway and began hitting. Daniel Bryan and some officials came to the rescue.
Grade: C
Analysis
Rollins said he was changed by the birth of his baby, but then addressed the same nonsense of being a savior. Nothing has actually changed.
It would have been a perfect opportunity for him to drop the Messianic things, but it seemed more like he was doubling down. We’ll see where it goes, but for now it looks like Rollins was the same guy as last year.
The promotion he offered was good, but it will not be one of his most memorable. The grid stepping out on him did not have the impact it should have, but that was because it did not make sense for everyone to be there in the first place.
5 of 7
Liv Morgan comes out of the gate with a drop kick as soon as the ref rings the bell. Bayley hit a back elbow before Morgan sent her into the middle rope and hit a false head in the back of her head.
The role model rolled out of the ring and when Morgan wanted to dive on her, Bayley jumped away and sent her into the barrier.
Morgan recovered and hit a face shoulder for a double. Bayley knocked her off the middle rope and hit a showbreaker that made Morgan scream in pain. Morgan hit an enziguiri out of nowhere.
Billie Kay came down to talk to Ruby Riott at the ring, and the distraction led to Bayley beat Morgan with her finisher for the win.
Grade: C +
Analysis
Morgan and Bayley both looked good in this game, but the finish was too much like everything we saw regarding Kay and The Riott Squad.
Kay is a funny personality, but WWE treads water with her character. She must either join The Riott Squad, or they must make it clear that they do not want her.
6 of 7
Otis and Chad Gable fought Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins in the next game. Dawkins and Gable kicked things off with an exchange of waists on the mat.
Ford applauded and tagged their technical exchange so he could go to Gable. The Street Profits briefly took control, but Gable was able to hit a belly-to-belly suplex so he could mark Otis.
The Dozer went on a rampage and took out both men. He hit the Caterpillar on Dawkins. Gable entered a double-team coach, but Ford took out Otis first.
Dawkins planted Gable with a backbone to set Ford up for a big splash to achieve victory.
Grade: B
Analysis
The team of Otis and Gable initially looked random, but they came together in a duo that makes sense. Both men have found success in amateur wrestling and use it as part of their characters.
As always, Ford and Dawkins worked as one. They are one of the best teams working today and never miss the opportunity to show off.
It was not specifically said that it was a title, but it would not be surprising if the win used the win as leverage if they asked Pearce.
7 of 7
Despite being attacked by Rollins, Cesaro was able to compete in the main event with Bryan. Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode looked confident as they made their entrance. It was another room thinning out.
Bryan took control of Ziggler early on, but when Cesaro entered, The Showoff put his injured knee behind him. As soon as he could, Cesaro noted to recover.
Roode was able to avoid a suicidal dive from Bryan and he hit Cesaro by accident. Corbin and Zayn came out to watch the show go to a breather. Reigns and Heyman were shown from behind the stage when we returned.
Ziggler and Roode have long controlled The Yes Man. The Swiss Superman finally got the hot label and got loose on his opponents. Red fell to his knees as he tried to swing Ziggler at his feet.
Cesaro hit Ziggler in the back with a martyr before locking up the Sharpshooter for the win. Uso attacked them with a chair after the match. Corbin and Zayn immediately joined, but Zayn eventually took Corbin out as well. KO ran down to hit Stunners on everyone, as he was the Stone Cold Steve Austin in 1998. The program ended with KO saying he was coming for Reigns.
Grade: B +
Analysis
The least shocking thing about Friday’s show was that it ended up being the best match of the night. Ziggler, Roode, Cesaro and Bryan are some of the most trusted artists in the world, so they had no problem collaborating.
So far, Zayn, Corbin, Bryan and Cesaro have qualified for the Chamber. Owens and Uso will likely get their chance to qualify next week.
It was a decent episode of SmackDown, but it was a notch among a few recent episodes in terms of the course of storylines. Much of what we saw felt repetitive.