Big Cass Returns to WWE on Smackdown

Big Cass is back on SmackDown Live, and it looks like his first big match is going to be a in a big spot. Last night on SmackDown Live, it was revealed that Cass will face Daniel Bryan at the upcoming Backlash WWE Network Special next month.

Cass cut an excellent promo on Tuesday’s episode detailing his issues with Daniel Bryan. Cass talked about how he had to rehab through seven months for his ACL injury, and the second he made his return to WWE, all everyone could talk about was Daniel Bryan being cleared for in-ring action.

A self-centered heel, Cass wanted the attention to be on him, and it wasn’t, and he resents Bryan for that. The message got a little thin when Cass said that Bryan reminded him of himself, when he was small and weak. Cass said he was small and pathetic until he was 16. 

Basically … Cass said that he was small and weak at 16 years old, and then he decided to grow. And now he’s seven feet tall. Seriously. Cass said he decided to grow. I didn’t know you could do that, but hey, good for him.

So with the exception of the lame content he was given to use in the middle of the promo, his delivery and message was really good. And, we know how strong he is in the ring, especially as a bigger guy.

The most intriguing part of this match is going to be who they put over. I figured they would pair Bryan with Miz as his first big singles feud, because Bryan could go over Miz and Miz, as a heel, could talk his way out of it. But with Cass, there’s such a size differential, I’m not sure that Cass can talk his way out of a loss to Bryan. From Bryan’s perspective, what does it say about his push if he loses his first big singles feud after returning from injury?

The story makes a lot of sense — Cass vs. Bryan — especially if they stuck to the narrative that Cass was jealous of the attention Bryan was getting for returning from his head injuries. But the execution will be important if WWE wants to protect both wrestlers moving forward. Who they put over, especially if it’s clean, will say a lot about who they view as being more ready for the main-event picture.