Don't Pull the Plug on Tag Team Wrestling

The Usos vs. Gold & Stardust
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

I'm going to admit first and foremost I have not been paying as close attention to wrestling as I would like to.  Sometimes life gets in the way of fun and entertainment and things get lost in the shuffle.  I do watch Raw on a regular basis and I keep up with the pay per views via the WWE Network.  I even went back and did some research so I'm basing my opinions on facts and not just what I perceive to be the truth.

Ten teams do battle at Survivor Series 1987
Photo courtesy: WWE

I love tag team wrestling.  Looking back on the very first (and second) Survivor Series events, there were ten viable tag teams on the roster.  Ten.  I don't know if I could name ten viable tag teams over the past couple of years, much less that would be on hand for one pay per view match.  The days of duos like Demolition, The British Bulldogs, and the Hart Foundation are long gone.  Now we have quick, put together-at-the-last-second combos out there.

Star & Goldust
Photo courtesy: WWE

Right now on the current main roster the Usos and Gold & Stardust are really the only two active teams I see anymore.  Los Matadores are sporadically used and I'm assuming the Wyatt Family will soon be back in action, but let's look back on the calendar year.

Cody Rhodes and Goldust lost the tag team titles to the New Age Outlaws at the Royal Rumble.  Yes, a team that hadn't competed together on WWE programming in 14 years made a comeback.  It was brief and nostalgic, so I'm not complaining.  I'm really not.  

Wrestlemania XXX Kickoff
Photo courtesy: WWE

At Extreme Rules, the now defunct duo of RybAxel beat the Cody and Goldie and the Usos wrestled the NAO.  There was a fatal four way that was the kickoff to Wrestlemania XXX.  Los Matadores and The Real Americans (also no longer together) were a part of that. There was also a six man tag featuring the Shield against NAO and Kane.

There were no tag team matches at Extreme Rules, but another six man with the Shield against Evolution.  Payback saw that rematch and a rematch between RybAxel and Cody & Goldust.  The Usos beat the Wyatts at Money in the Bank and the newly revamped Star and Goldust took on RybAxel (again).

The Wyatts vs. the Usos
Photo courtesy: WWE

Battleground featured a rematch between the Usos and the Wyatts. There were no tag team matches at SummerSlam.  We saw Gold & Stardust take on the Usos at Night of Champions and Hell in a Cell.  

Now that we're up to speed, you can see there's a huge lack of depth in the tag team pool.  Sure there were a few more makeshift teams through the year, including Big Show and Mark Henry who are now enemies, and Damien Mizdow and the Miz seem to be on the verge of a split too.  Reviewing the WWE roster, there are so many guys on it now that aren't on TV, I scratch my head wondering why they're not being put to use.  

Woods, Kingston, Big E
Photo courtesy: WWE

For a bit we were being teased with a faction of Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston, and Big E.  I think it's a move that would benefit all three men and give fans something fresh in terms of a new team.  I thought Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel had good chemistry prior to Tyson's injury and time away.  I'm reluctant to suggest others from NXT because I fear without the proper introduction, they'll be lost in the shuffle (see Fandango, Big E, and Adam Rose among others.)

I think the tag teams that are currently being used do an amazing job, but week after week of tag team or six man tag team matches featuring the same guys gets a little old after a while.  Let's give the division a breath of fresh air and mix things up a bit.