“There’s no edge” - Former WWE writer calls SmackDown ‘predictable’ (Exclusive)

The latest episode of WWE SmackDown is now in the history books, and it will be remembered for a long time. Many fans were looking forward to the episode, with it being John Cena's final SmackDown on his retirement tour, while fans even expected to see the returns of Brock Lesnar and AJ Lee.

However, former WWE writer Vince Russo doesn't seem to be impressed with what the blue brand has been putting up in general. Russo was part of WWE's creative team back during the Attitude Era and later went on to work for both WCW and TNA.

He was talking on a recent episode of BroDown on Sportskeeda WrestleBinge, where he stated that SmackDown is lacking an edge. He compared it with the Attitude Era, which used to be dangerous, but there isn't any of that on the current show, making it predictable in his eyes.

"What we're really missing, like, overall, and the tone of this show is like an edge. You know, the Attitude Era used to be dangerous. You don't have any of that today. There's no edge. There's no danger. You know, there's no, like, a dangerous feeling. It's just all very plotty, predicated, predictable, safe, you know, you name it," Russo said.

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While Russo was critical of SmackDown in general, this week's episode was extremely well-received by the majority of the fans. They were treated to a surprise match between John Cena and Sami Zayn for the US Title, which was interrupted by a returning Brock Lesnar.

The star-studded episode of WWE SmackDown saw all of Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins, and CM Punk grace the show in Punk's hometown of Chicago. The biggest surprise of the night was saved for the end, as AJ Lee made her return to the company after 10 years, sending the fans into a frenzy.

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About the author

Faiz is a WWE writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. He is a BBA graduate who is passionate about sports and wants to make a career in that field. This passion led to a postgraduate degree in Journalism, which helped him pivot into becoming a sports writer. When writing, he puts the utmost importance on accuracy and thorough research.

Faiz has six years of work experience across four companies. He started his career with Zomato and then moved to Amazon. He shifted to becoming a football writer at TV9 Digital and is now with Sportskeeda. He covered the Wrestling Xtreme Mania event in Gurgaon in 2025, where he had the opportunity to interview Raj The Maharaja, fka Jinder Mahal. At the same event, he also got quick interviews with former WWE Superstar Dijak and Japanese Joshi legend Emi Sakura.

When it comes to his favourite wrestlers, Faiz has two names in mind. He loved to watch Triple H before the current WWE CCO retired, and he is a huge fan of Roman Reigns. Being a loyal fan since the Tribal Chief's SHIELD days, Faiz credits Roman's mic skills and unmatched in-ring storytelling for his mega success. When he was young, one in-ring story left a lasting impression on his mind and eventually got him hooked on WWE. That match was Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania 24. Apart from that, he is also a fan of RAW.

When Faiz is not writing for Sportskeeda, he loves to keep up with other sports. He is an avid cricket and football fan, a huge gamer, and loves playing some RPGs on the PlayStation.

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Edited by Faiz Ahmed