Traina Thoughts: John Cena And Roman Reigns Tore Each Other Apart On 'Monday Night Raw'
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1. Monday Night Raw featured one of the most talked about segments in a long, long time last night when Roman Reigns and John Cena tore each other apart -- verbally -- to promote their upcoming match at the No Mercy pay-per-view on Sept. 24 (which I discussed with Reigns on my podcast a couple of weeks ago). Part of the exchange went like this:
Cena: "You are the Big Dog. Everybody back there knows it, everybody out here? Still kinda trying to figure it out. They go back and forth with you because when they look at you, they see what I see: A cheap-ass, corporately created John Cena bootleg."
Reigns: "They boo you because, first of all, you suck, and, second of all, it's because they see right through you. You’re a phony. You’re a yes man who can learn how to do anything or be anything, so if you wrap all that up, you’re just a fake bitch. No only that, he’s a part timin’ fake bitch."
Cena: "I’m still here because you can’t do your job. When it comes to this yard, you probably haven't learned it yet, there's only one rule: step up or step aside. And over the years there's been a few to step up, but nobody to ever keep up. And then I finally hear about this one guy. THE guy. THE Roman Reigns. THE one that can keep up. Now I look at you, and I listen to you, you should be ashamed I'm a part timer because I can do this part time better than you could ever do it full time.
Both men did their job extremely well. The crowd was mesmerized and social media was abuzz afterward. Some people even think Cena and Reigns were "shooting." They were not.
One interesting note is that in the edited, WWE clip above (full version here), the company removed part of the segment where Reigns momentarily forgot his line, which caused him to break character and laugh, while Cena then talked about "breaking down the fourth wall," while telling Reigns he needs to learn how to cut promos.
2. Ric Flair is on the mend. WOOOO!
3. This was the best stat I saw after the news broke that the Lions signed Matt Stafford to a five-year, $135 million contract, making him the highest-paid player in NFL history.
4. J.J. Watt's originally tried to raise $200,000 for the people in Houston who have been affected by Hurricane Harvey. That goal was easily met, so he changed it to $500,000. Done. Then Watt moved the goal to $1 million. Check. So last night he said the new milestone to reach would be $1.5 million. Shortly after 11 a.m. ET, that was accomplished. Impressive and insipiring. If you'd like to donate, just visit YouCaring.com/JJWatt.
5. I know everyone is all hot and bothered these days about jersey burning, but tattoo bets are an even lamer epidemic.
6. We all love it when some inebriated fan runs on the field during a game and gets tackled by security before being brought to jail. Complex.com has a great story about what REALLY happens when someone gets the courage to make this bold, yet dumb choice.
7.RANDOM WRESTLING VIDEO OF THE DAY: WWE superstars forgetting their lines is not uncommon.