Cody Rhodes Talks Leading Team USA At WWE Survivor Series, Says They Might Be Bad Guys

The traditional Survivor Series Match is being brought back to the titular premium live event, with Cody Rhodes and Rey Mysterio leading the battle of Team USA vs. Team Mexico. Rhodes, branded with a United States-themed tattoo on his neck, is naturally looking forward to the cross-country showdown. That said, he does have some concerns about it, too.

"To kick it over to let's do Survivor Series where we just say, let's go team USA versus Team Mexico, now that's a positive, but there's room for some trouble along the way," Rhodes told "Unsportsmanlike," seemingly referring to the real-life tensions between the countries. "We got to keep this on the up and up team. Team USA can't be the good guys. We can't. But are we? I got to do three weeks of promos talking about how we're going to beat Team Mexico. How do you do that without getting in any trouble? You can't. It's impossible."

In an effort to prevent real-life matters from oozing into their WWE storyline, Rhodes stated that Team USA, so far consisting of himself, CM Punk, and Je'Von Evans, supports all the other countries involved in the upcoming Survivor Series: WarGames PLE. This includes Mexico, Ireland, and Samoa, the latter of which extends to the ancestry of The Bloodline members.

"It's a setup, but I'm gonna see how good I can navigate these waters," Rhodes said. "If I can get to Survivor Series, which is in Houston, Texas, I think Team USA might be the bad guys here. I think we'll be the better team, I actually know we'll be the better team, but it's a minefield."

Half of the Team USA vs. Team Mexico line-up has been filled so far. The United States representatives are looking for two more competitors to join them. Mysterio, meanwhile, will head into battle with the 2026 Men's Money in the Bank winner Penta and three more stars to-be-named.

According to Rhodes, his particular side "needed" Evans, who, interestingly, reigns as a WWE World Tag Team Champion alongside Penta.

"Bouncy, athletically, in terms of what he can do now and kind of the rub up with Penta. They're champions. We've got a house divided going into Survivor Series," Rhodes said. "He's just the future of the business. I've been on here before and talked about Bron Breakker being the future of the business, but Bron's more traditional in terms of what you think pro wrestler is. If you come to a show and don't enjoy and a good feeling from watching Je'Von, it's crazy. He's very similar to how I used to feel watching Jeff Hardy, but he's also a baby. It's just fun."

Dubbed the "Young OG," Evans has built a reputation as being one the brightest and bounciest stars in all of WWE. That energy came to the forefront at the recent Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match, where Evans' high-flying and fearless mentality led to a number of memorable moments. One saw him pulling up to the ring in an ambulance and immediately confronting Bron Breakker. Another resulted in him crashing through the top of the same vehicle after being pushed off a ladder.

Evans ascended to WWE's main roster at the start of 2026 after a two-year run on the "WWE NXT" brand. He and Penta claimed the World Tag Team Championships by defeating Breakker and Austin Theory at WWE Crown Jewel.

"I want to have some time with [Evans]," Rhodes added. "I don't know how much longer I'll be doing this and have some time with him and experience that."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Unsportsmanlike" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.