Cruz Montana’s addition to The 946 on Monday’s RAW put Roman Reigns and The Bloodline in an even more difficult situation. Montana appeared in a mask, attacked Reigns, and helped Royce Keys stand tall to end the show.
WWE has a stable that can last beyond the current feud. But for that to happen, WWE has to avoid three decisions that held back promising groups in the past.
1 – Repeating RETRIBUTION’s Disappearance
In 2020, RETRIBUTION started out destroying sets and attacking anyone in its path. Months later, its members were losing matches on a regular basis, and the group eventually fell apart at Fastlane in March 2021 after Mustafa Ali lost to Riddle.
The 946 has also used violent attacks to get attention. Once the dust settles, the difference has to show. If Keys and company start losing regular TV matches every week, the threat they built against The Bloodline won’t mean anything.
They don’t have to win all the time. But there have to be consequences for what they do, even after Reigns is no longer their main target.
2 – Repeating the Original Nexus’ Problem of Too Many embers
The Nexus debuted in June 2010 with eight members and a brutal invasion. The group had strength in numbers, but there was little room to develop each member individually. Losing to John Cena’s team at SummerSlam made the issue worse.
With Montana, The 946 is now up to six members (Keys, Montana, Carmelo Hayes, Bronco Nima, Lucien Price, and Jaida Parker).
WWE should stop there. New additions can make for a nice surprise or two, but they can leave the likes of Hayes and Montana lost in the shuffle. The group needs wins in singles matches and goals of its own, not more people at ringside.
3 – Creating a Second Bloodline
The feud with Reigns puts The 946 in the spotlight, but it comes with a trap. If Keys turns into another Tribal Chief and the rest of the group is only there to follow orders, WWE will have created a version of the very group it’s feuding with.
Keys has shown one key difference by saying his group is built on loyalty rather than family.
That idea has to be the focus of the booking.
The 946 should still have its own ambitions, like challenging for titles and wrestling other top stars. If the group were to disappear once the war with The Bloodline is over, all the violence over the past few months would have done nothing but put Reigns over again.