5 things that must happen on WWE RAW, NXT, and SmackDown this week - New faction forms; Hall of Famer returns

WWE has had a rather exciting bunch of shows over the past week. The Viking Raiders impressed on WWE RAW once again, while Charlotte Flair lost her cool after a loss to Asuka.

In a surprising move, Braun Strowman came to the aid of Drew McIntyre. Strowman and McIntyre were unable to defeat T-Bar and Mace. Will the two former World Champions take down the heels on RAW this week?

Kyle O’Reilly returned to WWE NXT this week after his victory over Adam Cole at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver. KOR expressed his desire to target the new NXT Champion and proved his worth once again by defeating Cameron Grimes.

KUSHIDA issued an Open Challenge for his NXT Cruiserweight Championship. The Open Challenge was answered by Oney Lorcan. KUSHIDA defeated Lorcan after a good match. Who will step up to KUSHIDA next?

WWE SmackDown saw Daniel Bryan shower Cesaro with a lot of praise. Aleister Black made his return to WWE TV after more than six months out of action, while Apollo Crews defeated Kevin Owens. Will Bryan win his first Universal title on SmackDown this week? Or will he be forced to leave SmackDown after losing to Roman Reigns once again?

Let’s take a look at the five things that must happen on WWE RAW, NXT and SmackDown this week.

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#5 The new Tag Team Champions must appear on WWE RAW

AJ Styles and Omos appeared as an unlikely tag team on WWE RAW. The two superstars slowly built themselves up and challenged The New Day for the RAW Tag Team Championships at WWE WrestleMania 37.

Styles and Omos ended up winning the titles after the giant debutant squashed both Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. Styles and Omos were expected to show up for a celebration on RAW after WrestleMania.

However, that did not happen. The two WWE Superstars did not show up on RAW last week either, even though other tag teams appeared on the Red brand. Styles and Omos will need to make their title reign memorable and prove that WWE creative made the right decision by handing them the titles.

With that in mind, WWE must allow Styles and Omos to appear on RAW this week to celebrate their WrestleMania victory. The RAW Tag Team Championships picture hasn’t been too healthy over the past two years.

The Phenomenal One is someone who can help elevate the titles and the entire division in the months to come. Therefore, Styles and Omos must appear on RAW this week to help keep the scene interesting.

#4 Keith Lee must appear as Mace & T-Bar’s new leader on WWE RAW

Keith Lee came across as a dominant force on WWE RAW after making the move from NXT. Lee has since competed against some of the biggest names in WWE including Randy Orton, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre and AJ Styles.

After reaching the WWE Championship scene on RAW, Lee was set to compete in a United States Championship match at WWE Elimination Chamber 2021. However, Lee could not compete in the match and has been away from the ring ever since.

Fans have watched RETRIBUTION split up and T-Bar and Mace go after McIntyre over the past several weeks. Many fans believe that T-Bar and Mace may be working for MVP as part of The Hurt Business.

This week on RAW, WWE must pull off a big swerve to surprise its viewers. T-Bar and Mace must defeat McIntyre and Braun Strowman on RAW, following which The Limitless One must return to lay both men out.

Lee must then be revealed as the new leader of T-Bar and Mace which could help make things very interesting on RAW. Lee is an unstoppable force who has a lot of history with T-Bar. The partnership could help elevate Lee to the WWE Championship picture.

#3 Adam Cole must promise to end Kyle O’Reilly on WWE NXT

After Karrion Kross sent a warning to the entire WWE NXT roster a couple of weeks ago, it looked like it would take some time for someone to step up to The Herald of Doomsday.

However, it did not take long as NXT’s new poster boy Kyle O’Reilly immediately expressed his desire to fight the new NXT Champion. KOR defeated Cameron Grimes later in the night to once again prove that he is more than ready to reach the top of NXT.

While O’Reilly has his sights set on the NXT title again, the superstar should worry about Adam Cole’s return this week. Cole broke up WWE’s top faction a couple of months ago and paid the price at TakeOver: Stand & Deliver.

This week, Cole will be part of an interview with Arash Markazi. The Panama City Playboy will likely talk about his future in WWE and whether he will continue in NXT or move to another brand.

However, Cole must continue to show his displeasure at KOR’s rise and claim that he will only rest after putting an end to his former best friend. The angle will allow WWE to prolong the rivalry between Cole and O’Reilly.

It will also give Kross a chance to breathe at the top of the NXT brand before coming across a tough challenger.

#2 Aleister Black must continue his story backstage on WWE SmackDown

To the utter delight of the WWE Universe, Aleister Black made a return on SmackDown last week. Black appeared in a vignette reading from a book entitled "The Dark Father."

The Striking Man from Amsterdam sent an ominous message to the WWE Universe and got his fans excited about his potential return. While not much is known at this point, it seems like Black will be returning with a newer and slightly different character.

While WWE did not need to tweak Black’s old character, the new character could offer him a chance to start afresh. Keeping that in mind, WWE must allow Black to appear in vignettes in the weeks to come rather than exposing him in the ring.

Black must continue to drop hints on this week’s SmackDown where he must warn his doubters and suggest that he’s coming back for the top prize.

Not only will this help WWE build Black’s character properly before giving him a top run, but it should also give them a chance to see fans’ reactions on social media before going all out with his new character.

Creative failed to use Black to the max during his first run on the main roster. They must do their best to right that wrong and give him the run he deserves on SmackDown.

#1 Edge must return to cost Daniel Bryan his match on WWE SmackDown

Daniel Bryan showered praise on Cesaro during WWE SmackDown last week. The Yes Man believes Cesaro deserves a shot at the Universal Championship more than anyone else. Bryan and Cesaro then teamed up to compete against Jey Uso and Seth Rollins.

Bryan delivered the final blow to Uso to pick up the victory for his team. While Cesaro was the man knocking for a Universal Title opportunity, The Tribal Chief chose to give Bryan another shot at the title instead.

However, the stakes are much higher this time as a loss for Bryan will result in his exit from the SmackDown brand. The Yes Man has been a huge part of SmackDown for years, and his exit would certainly hurt the brand.

This week on SmackDown, Bryan must fight with all his heart once again and come very close to victory before Edge returns to attack him. The attack must cause the match to end via disqualification, sparking a rivalry between Edge and Bryan.

The two men have been in each other’s bad books for a long time, and this rivalry will help them go ahead post-WrestleMania. The stage is set for Edge’s return and a rivalry between the two WWE veterans.