Triple H And Vince McMahon Once Fought About Whether They Should Punish Roman Reigns And Seth Rollins
It's been a decade since Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose (known in AEW as Jon Moxley) first debuted in WWE. It was apparent WWE saw exceptional things in store for the trio from the start, made crystal clear by their impressive debut taking out both John Cena and Ryback during the main event of the 2012 Survivor Series. Rollins, Reigns, and Mox immediately went on to feuds with top stars like Daniel Bryan, Kane, and even Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in February 2013. The duo of Rollins and Reigns would eventually capture the WWE Tag Team Championships at Extreme Rules that May, with Ambrose winning the United States Title on the same night. However, as summer rolled around that year, the trio started treading a bit of water and moving down the card for reasons unclear to fans.
Behind the scenes, Rollins and Reigns had garnered a bit of heat in the locker room having bumped heads with established veterans of the business. In Rollins' case, reports indicated that he got into a disagreement with Paul Wight (The Big Show) due to some "improper conduct." Reigns' issues backstage were much more evident, as word circulated that he had gotten into an argument with Randy Orton in front of the entire locker room. Their issue centered around something that happened during a house show tag match they were both involved in.
How The Shield Changed
Falling down the card definitely hurt The Shield's momentum, but things were originally set to be much worse. Vince McMahon had the group falling into obscurity without a second glance, but Triple H discussed the matter with his father-in-law and recognized the investment they were making in keeping The Shield as an important part of WWE. At Money in the Bank 2013, Rollins and Reigns were relegated to the pre-show in a match against The Usos. The impressive efforts put forth by all four men despite being on the pre-show erased whatever heat was still directed at the group and got management refocused on their collective futures.
Obviously, a lot has changed since that first year of The Shield running roughshod over WWE. As a trio, they gave us unforgettable matches like their bout against the Wyatt Family at Elimination Chamber 2014, but even as individuals, each man has come into their own. Reigns is responsible for the longest reign ever with the WWE Universal Championship and has been commended for his role as the head of The Bloodline. Rollins has done his best to bring further legitimacy to both the Intercontinental and United States Championships in recent years, and Ambrose's shift to Jon Moxley in AEW put him in position to have a third reign with the AEW World Championship.