Blueprint Examination

If I were Matt Morgan I would give a return to WWE some serious consideration.

That’s not a random statement from nowhere, Morgan’s contract status with the Orlando outfit expires this year and he’s stated in numerous interviews that he hasn’t yet ruled out a return to his former employer. He will either be a free agent in October, when his contract officially runs out, or he is one right now, having fulfilled the number of dates specified in the document. Whatever the case ‘The DNA of TNA’ will soon find himself in a position where he has to make an important career decision. Notably, Morgan has stated that WWE have made it clear they would be interested in signing him.

The truth is that the big man should have achieved far more than he has in TNA. He has all the tools a pro wrestler needs to succeed. He’s eloquent, has a good physique, a tall frame, knows how to wrestle and can provoke a reaction from fans. Yet the most he’s ever done in TNA is capturing the tag team title (with no-hopers Hernandez and Crimson). Had TNA ever been serious about creating its own name talent Matt Morgan would have been an ideal candidate.

How long will TNA retain its DNA?

Morgan has played every role possible in the company. He’s been both a face and a heel. He’s been the independent thinker and the heel stable’s insurance policy. He’s been the tag team guy and the singles star. He’s wrestled everyone there is to wrestle. The only thing he’s not done is capture TNA’s world championship and that’s unlikely to ever happen because the promotion has locked itself into a stale pattern of promoting the same guys in the same top spots. Bobby Roode and James Storm may have made it to the top but it took both a very long time to do it and a storyline (of sorts) was planned out for them both before they went to the top.

The recent return to WWE of Matt ‘Lord Tensai’ Bloom shows that John Laurinaitis is prepared to re-sign former stars who were not draws during their original runs with the organisation if they have improved in their time away from the company. Bloom travelled to Japan and turned himself into a standout worker.

Morgan has done the same while in TNA. He wasn’t bad during his time in WWE, but he was rough around the edges. He has become polished and reliable in TNA, thanks to the greater freedom the promotion affords its talent. Morgan could do a lot to improve the WWE product and would benefit from a roster of almost completely fresh match-ups. If WWE had a mind too they could turn him into a big star. That’s true of anyone really, considering how much money the company has at its disposal and the systems they’ve established for themselves over the years, but with Morgan significantly less work would be required.

It’s possible Morgan will stay in TNA. That’s his comfort zone. He knows he’s going to get a paycheque, wrestle on TV most weeks and get to wrestle the top names (even if he does usually lose to them). A return to WWE would be a gamble as he could very well end up failing in whatever new role he was given, leaving him to head back to Orlando with his tail between his legs.

I think ‘The Blueprint’ should take the risk. He could potentially gain a lot from a second stint in WWE, easily enough to outweigh the potential embarrassment of failing.