FanPost

Tag Team Weekly Roundup and Power Ratings: Where does New Day’s championship win leave the NXT belts?

WWE.com

Pretty much everybody but Booker T seemed to enjoy the idea of New Day matching up Pretty Deadly for the NXT men’s tag championships at Deadline. Then the match was fantastic and culminated in ya boys adding more gold to their trophy case. But with the most decorated tag champs in history holding the titles for what is considered the developmental brand, where do all the players go next?

In the short term, having a popular and prolific team like the Princes of Positivity hold NXT gold will bring more eyes to the product. This is more noteworthy than Dolph Ziggler winning the NXT men’s championship for a hot minute given the large following and fanbase New Day have. But a major question is – how much do they defend the belts on Tuesday nights? Or Friday nights? Both?

First off, a rematch with Pretty Deadly would be more than welcome. The two teams have fantastic chemistry, and spots like the Eddie Guerrero Fakery Festival were hilarious. Despite losing the gold for now, Pretty Deadly showed they are main-roster ready for sure, which is a pretty big victory for the British duo.

But they aren’t the only teams who could put on entertaining matches with New Day. NXT’s tag division is pretty face heavy right now, but matches with The Creed Brothers, Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen, Malik Blade and Edris Enofe, Chase U, among others, in the spirit of competition would still rule. On the heel side, The Dyad, while not allowed to show as much personality as when they were Grizzled Young Veterans, are still damn good in the ring. Indus Sher are honorable folks, so they don’t seem like full-on heels, but could still make for a nice matchup.

If New Day want to bring the belts to Friday once in a while, they have a ready-made rivalry with former NXT champs Imperium. Reviving Brawling Brutes-New Day, even with both teams faces, could be fun. Viking Raiders continue to lurk and New Day haven’t solved them recently. And SmackDown’s deep tag scene can provide any number of matchups, albeit generally with obvious outcomes, against the likes of Legado del Fantasma, Hit Row, Maximum Male Models and Los Lotharios.

One way or another, even for those of us who like Pretty Deadly, this title switch creates more opportunities for multiple days of the week. And the team that wrests the belts from New Day will have unlocked a major achievement.

The following Tag Team Power Rankings take into account wins, power and placement of segments, recentness of appearances, creative direction and momentum for teams and factions.

WWE Tag Team Power Rankings through Dec. 10:

1. The Bloodline (last week: 1)

Pro: Still holding all kinds of gold after a pair of successful defenses. Solo Sikoa even made Matt Riddle do a stretcher job.
Con: While Usos tag matches are still entertaining, when there's no chance of opponents winning, it does diminish the excitement.

2. New Day (not ranked)

Pro: The most decorated tag team in WWE history went from surprise guests to new champs really quick, and will get a platform to remind us all how good they are.
Con: That some folks might consider this a demotion if they don't get to defend the titles on the main roster.

3. Damage CTRL (Bayley, Iyo Sky and Dakota Kai) (3)

Pro: Sky and Kai remain women's tag champs, while Bayley picked up a big win in a very good triple threat match. Sky and Kai also kept Becky from winning her way to face Bayley.
Con: ... which means Bex will likely try to keep The Role Model from winning next week. Plus, Sky and Kai now have to defend against the new team of Liv Morgan and Tegan Knox.

4. Judgment Day (2)

Pro: Dominik Mysterio defeated Akira Tozawa, while Rhea looked dominant for much of her triple threat match.
Con: Rhea wasn't able to get the win, and now apparently Street Profits want to give the group the smoke.

5. The OC (8)

Pro: Had a bounce back week with a win in a six-man match.
Con: So they're done with Judgment Day, having lost their previous eight-man tag?

6. Liv Morgan and Tegan Nox (not ranked)

Pro: One match into their partnership, they already have a tag title match.
Con: That all seems quite sudden, and not very convincing that they'd win it.

7. Katana Chance and Kayden Carter (6)

Pro: Still NXT women's tag champs.
Con: Not wrestling much but have multiple teams lining up for a chance at their straps.

8. Pretty Deadly (5)

Pro: Was their Christmas story enjoyable in a weird way? Yes, boy! Did they show up and show out against New Day? Yes, boy!
Con: Did they retain their NXT gold? No, boy!

9. Toxic Attraction (4)

Pro: Mandy Rose remains NXT women's champ and her mates remain in the tag title picture.
Con: It doesn't seem like an ideal time to give Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne back the gold?

10. Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen (not ranked)

Pro: Picked up a win on NXT.
Con: It's pretty obvious Kiana James is using Jensen, but the big lug is too blinded to see it.

Best tag segment of the week: New Day-Pretty Deadly was not only highly entertaining but will benefit both teams in the long run. That's how you make an effective segment.

Grade: A-

The tag title switch nobody could have seen coming a week ago was the real highlight. It was nice to see The Usos defend their titles twice, even if it would be hard to have doubted what team would win.

The FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Cageside Seats readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cageside Seats editors or staff.