Chris Jericho surprised Drew McIntyre was among recent WWE cuts; were politics and 3MB gimmick to blame?

Among the biggest surprises, and disappointments, for many fans in yesterday's wave of releases from WWE, was the dissolution of the popular 'enhancement talent' trio 3MB.  Particularly shocking was the release of Drew McIntyre, a tall, handsome Scotsman who just five years before had been endorsed by Vince McMahon as a future world champion.

Include Chris Jericho among the names of those surprised by McIntyre's exit.  The former world champion and WWE Legend got to talking about the releases quickly on the latest epsiode of his podcast, Talk is Jericho.  "That's a big surprise for me," said Y2J, " I think that Drew could have been a lot bigger than he was."

More interesting were his insights into why the 29 year old ended up on the chopping block:

I think he got sidetracked when he got married to Taryn, I don't think that worked out too well for him politically. And, once again, once you're in 3MB, it's kind of the end of the line. It's funny that Heath Slater out of all the guys is the one that stayed. But if I was TNA or Ring of Honor or Global Wrestling Force (sic), I would pick up Drew McIntyre as well, he would be another guy that would be on my instant list along with Evan Bourne. Because I think Drew has a lot to offer and he's unique, he's got the Scottish accent. Put him in a suit and make him serious. All you have to do is have him come out and beat up guys for like a month and you would forget right away about the whole 3MB thing. Gimmicks like that don't damage your career but they definitely hurt it and they needed to get out of it and they needed a fresh start.

Rumors of McIntyre being damaged by his marriage to Taryn Terrell (currently under contract to TNA, she worked in WWE under the name Tiffany), and the ensuing drama of their union have been around since she left WWE in 2010.

The 3MB stuff is something else, though.  We fans like to give the guys and gals who get the comedy and jobber gimmicks credit for working hard in those roles, because it's a part that somebody has to play and wrestlers can be very entertaining while doing it.  But it's always eye-opening to get a wrestler's perspective on it, and remember that no one gets in the business hoping to one day be the goofball who gets his ass kicked by a guy who is getting a push.

Also, the guy that most 'smart' fans see as the most talented member of 3MB, Heath Slater, is the one that Jericho kind of throws under the bus and finds it weird that he's still with the company.

Our metrics for talent evaluation are often very different from the ones the boys in the back use.  Regardless, it's not hard to see why Jericho and others still see something in a 6' 5", 250 pound guy who still hasn't turned 30 but who has seven years of WWE experience under his belt.

"I'm a big believer in Drew and I think that he could do a lot more," Y2J said, "so hopefully he'll get a chance."

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What do you make of Jericho's comments on Drew McIntyre, Cagesiders?  Did being in 3MB hurt him?  Is he destined to be a star in another company?