*By Request*
“From time to time, I see you mention AEW fans and their penchant for calling the promotion’s free agent signings ‘game changers’ and things like that. Could you write something about AEW’s signings from WWE that you think have done the best job? You could also write something about the ones you feel have done the worst.”
Yeah, I often like to poke fun at the fans who feel EVERY SINGLE PERSON who signs to AEW is going to be a “game changer” and be the person who takes the company to the promised land. They do it for former World Champions, and they do it for people who the casual wrestling fan doesn’t know. It’s pretty funny to me, actually.
The request was laid out pretty easily. I’ll be looking at the entire history of AEW, and anybody they have signed from WWE, to find who I feel have been the best and worst additions to the roster. The names I list don’t necessarily have to come directly from WWE to AEW, but as long as there wasn’t several stops in between their time with the companies, a wrestler will be eligible here.
Before anyone complains, this isn’t me saying “ZOMG AEW ONLEE SYNZ WWE REEJEKTS” or anything like that. I was given a request, and I’m fulfilling said request. I was asked to talk about talent signed from WWE. Nothing more, nothing less.
To keep the word count from spiraling out of control, I’ll go with the top five and the bottom five, and we’ll go from there. I’d rather close things out with some positivity, so I’ll be starting this off with my choices for the five worst free agent signings (coming from WWE) in AEW history.
WORST
5. Parker Boudreaux – Ahh, remember the hype behind this guy when he signed with WWE back in 2021? After Boudreaux began referring to himself as the “Next Big Thing,” Paul Heyman himself would co-sign it, tweeting that Boudreaux’s reference was a “spoiler.” Unfortunately, neither one of them could’ve been any more wrong. Parker was absolutely awful in the ring, with some of the goofiest mannerisms you’ll ever see. He never got any better, and was released four months later, so of course Tony Khan thought it would be a great idea to sign the guy. He was still awful in the ring, and still had some of the goofiest mannerisms you’ll ever see. After seven months with AEW, and a grand total of three matches on television, he suffered an injury that kept him out of action for nearly a year… and got released again. The list of people that AEW has actually released from a contract isn’t very long, but ol’ Parker is included.
4. Deonna Purrazzo – Honestly, she is one of the reasons I’m writing this column in the first place. When she made her AEW debut in January 2024, a columnist from another site tweeted out that Deonna was going to be a “game changer” for the company. Within moments, the columnist was absolutely flooded with negative replies from all corners of the Twitter world. Deonna became just another in a long, long line of free agent signings that was going to take AEW to brand new heights according to the diehard AEW fans. She also became just another in a long, long line of free agent signings that never really lived up to that hype. I’m a big fan of Deonna’s in-ring work, but her run with the company has gotten over like a fart in church. She had a two-month unbeaten streak to start, earning herself a shot at the AEW Women’s Title, which she lost. Since that loss, she has fallen further and further down the card, to the point where she has a total of three matches on television in 2025… all losses, and none coming over the last four months or so. Her last singles victory on AEW television came six months ago, when she defeated Shazza McKenzie on an episode of Rampage. Yeah… exactly. It has gotten to the point where she tweeted a passive aggressive shot at her usage recently. Ouch.
3. Saraya – In crafting the lists for this column, I went back and forth between Saraya and Deonna for this spot and the one before it. When it was time to make the final list, I had to put Saraya in a higher spot. Yes, Saraya’s AEW run saw her win the Women’s World Title once, which is something Deonna can’t claim in her career. However, Saraya also arrived with infinitely more hype than Deonna did, and Saraya’s “lows” have been much worse than Deonna’s have been so far. Saraya went from beloved addition to genuinely disliked in almost record time, and she did next-to-nothing after her month-and-a-half long title reign. In a one-year span after dropping the AEW Women’s Title, she went 3-10 on television before disappearing from the company, ultimately leaving a few months later. So much promise, and very little of it came to fruition.
2. Miro – My math could be a little off here, but I think there were more reports of backstage issues involving Miro turning down creative pitches from AEW than he had actual matches in AEW. He would be gone for lengthy stretches of time, and sure enough, we’d see a report that Tony Khan pitched a few ideas to him about a potential return to television, only for those reports to say Miro turned them all down. He was with AEW for four-and-a-half years, and in that time, he wrestled a total of 30 matches on television or pay-per-view. Even though he was doing the best overall work of his career, with his “Redeemer” character being on fire, he never really found solid footing. Even a run as the TNT Champion didn’t do much for him. An argument could be made that he should’ve been the AEW World Champion at some point, but he never even came close to contending for the title, let alone winning it.
1. The Hardys – Matt Hardy’s AEW debut was overshadowed by coming in the same episode as the AEW debut of Brodie Lee. Then, the match that he was brought in for (Blood & Guts) was delayed due to the COVID pandemic. Matt’s most memorable in-ring moment while with AEW was at All Out 2020, when he nearly had his brains splattered all over the concrete in a match with Sammy Guevara, knocking himself totally loopy, but the match continued on nonetheless. Jeff Hardy’s debut was meme-worthy, as he decided to dance and pose for the AEW fans before running to the ring to save his brother from a five-on-one attack. Three months after debuting, Jeff would be arrested on DUI charges, and would receive an indefinite suspension that would keep him away for ten months. Both Hardy brothers seemed a step or two behind in their AEW tenures, seeming old and at the end of their careers. Since leaving AEW, both of them have looked better in the ring, which makes you wonder just what was going on while they were there. Either way, one of the greatest tag teams in the history of wrestling looked bad in AEW, and had some unfortunate circumstances be their most memorable moments with the company.
Now, let’s try to wipe the bad taste out of our mouths with some positive discussion.
BEST
5. Chris Jericho – Say whatever you want about the Chris Jericho of 2025 that has compromising photos of Tony Khan on a hard drive somewhere to keep getting himself booked. No, really… say whatever you want about him. I don’t care. The Chris Jericho of 2019 that became AEW’s first World Champion, though… that guy was a great signing. He was the perfect choice to be the first AEW World Champion, as his star power helped to show fans that AEW wasn’t just going to be “indy darlings” and names that casual viewers may not have ever heard of.
4. Bryan Danielson – The man who many, myself included, feel is the greatest overall in-ring performer in pro wrestling history has been a great addition for AEW. From the moment he arrived, he seemed to have carte blanche to wrestle the type of matches he wanted to, and perhaps that WWE wasn’t willing to let him do very often. You could make the argument that those matches and style of wrestling really hit the fast forward button on his career, possibly sending him back into retirement, but even if that’s the case, it was so much fun while it lasted.
3. Swerve Strickland – If the question was asked about which former WWE name has improved their proverbial stock the most since joining AEW, the “correct” answer is 1000000000% either Swerve or the next name on my list (spoiler alert). There is zero doubt in my mind about that. Fans of Shane Strickland have known how skilled he was in the ring for years, but he really didn’t get a chance to showcase much of those skills while he was under WWE contract. Since signing an AEW contract, he has done nothing but look like an absolute superstar (no WWE “superstar” pun intended). He has shown the ability to thrive in a variety of match styles, has been able to shine on the microphone, and continues to carry himself like a huge deal. To say he’s in the perfect place right now would be an incredible understatement.
2. Toni Storm – As I said, if you were talking about which former WWE wrestler has improved their stock the most since joining AEW, the answer you’d be looking for is either Swerve or Toni Storm. Honestly, you could flip flop the two of them on this list, and it wouldn’t really matter. The reason I have Toni ranked ahead is because of how huge the change has been with her character. Think about what she was doing in WWE… hell, even what she was doing when she first got to AEW… and now think about what she’s doing now. She might as well be a completely different person right now. The “Timeless” persona has been a… wait for it… game changer for her. Nobody anywhere in the business is doing the level of character work that she’s doing, and she has excelled at it. Every single bit of it. Like Swerve, it would be the understatement of the year to say Toni is in the perfect place right now.
1. Jon Moxley – How many of you watched AEW Double Or Nothing 2019 live as it happened? If you did, then you should remember the feeling you had when Mox was shown walking to the ring after the show’s main event. Even though it wasn’t a shock to see Mox somewhere, as WWE made it a very public deal that the contract of Dean Ambrose was expiring in April 2019, but seeing the former member of The Shield on AEW pay-per-view felt like something special. He showed up, and from day one, he looked more motivated than he had in years. The man has been very open about the psychological, emotional, and physical toll that working for Vince McMahon took on him. A newly motivated Jon Moxley has run roughshod on AEW for the last six years. Four AEW World Title reigns, one interim AEW World Title reign, and one AEW International Title reign… he has been dominant, and has placed the entire company squarely on his back from their first show until today. It’s hard to top that.
Do you agree with my choices? Disagree? Who do you think are the best and/or worst WWE-to-AEW signings in All Elite Wrestling history? As always, feel free to hit me up in the comments section below, or on Bluesky (@aaronhyden.bsky.social), and let me know what’s on your mind.
Now, let’s get to my Weekly Power Rankings, before I close things out with the list of songs I was listening to as I put this column together.
Weekly Power Rankings
Will Ospreay vs Swerve Strickland: I’ve said this time and time again, but it rings true here… this was a pay-per-view main event held on television. Fantastic match, with two of the best in the business going to battle for 30 minutes.
Sami Zayn vs Bron Breakker vs Penta vs Dominik Mysterio: Here’s another thing I’ve said time and time again… both AEW and WWE really know how to put Triple Threat and Four-Way matches together well. This was no different. All four men looked really good here. If there’s a complaint I have, it’s that WWE seems to be stuck in a holding pattern of having interference (legality be damned) in damn near every match like this, no matter how often they go to that well. It’s bordering on ridiculous.
Jey Uso vs Gunther: A big fight feel, with one of the top titles in the sport being defended on Netflix. I do think Jey Uso’s character is more interesting in “chase mode,” but I’m also disappointed in how his title reign was handled. There wasn’t much to it at all. Now that Gunther is the World Heavyweight Champion again, do we get another super lengthy title reign like all of Gunther’s reigns under Triple H end up being? I guess we’ll see.
Rhea Ripley vs Liv Morgan vs Kairi Sane vs Roxanne Perez: Another Four-Way that ended up being really good, with everyone involved getting a chance to shine. I really dig the way Roxanne stole the pin and the win here. It fits her character really well.
Randy Orton vs LA Knight vs Carmelo Hayes vs Aleister Black: Oh, hey, another Four-Way that ended up being a lot of fun. Another thing I like about these matches for the King & Queen Of The Ring is that there might be an “obvious” winner to some, the field is laid out in a way that you could actually make a case for anybody winning each match.
Bandido vs The Beast Mortos: Are the Mexicans on the AEW roster contractually obligated to only have matches against other Mexicans? It sure seems like it. The matches are, far more often than not, very entertaining. That’s not the problem. It just feels like a lot of the same thing, week in and week out, on every show.
Cody Rhodes vs Andrade vs Damian Priest vs Shinsuke Nakamura: Another Four-Way! Winning King & Queen Of The Ring, and earning a World Title shot at SummerSlam, sure seems to have motivated a whole bunch of members of the WWE roster. Good stuff.
AJ Styles vs Chad Gable: If they were given another five minutes to work with, the match probably would’ve been listed higher here. If they were given another ten minutes to work with, the match probably would’ve been insanely great. It’s still listed here, but come on… these two facing each other, and they only got about eight minutes to work with?
Anthony Bowens vs Kyle Fletcher: I like Anthony Bowens, but man, Kyle Fletcher is really something else. He just seems to excel at everything he does in the ring. He has “future World Champion” written all over him.
Oba Femi vs Jasper Troy: Those in charge of NXT sure have a lot of faith in Oba Femi. Making him the World Champion is one thing. Having him wrestle main roster names and other veterans is another thing. Putting him in the ring with someone who has little-to-no in-ring experience, though, is something else entirely. That’s a ballsy move. It worked out here. This was exactly what it was supposed to be. Big meaty men slapping meat.
Jade Cargill vs Piper Niven vs Michin vs Nia Jax: Yet another Four-Way! Helluva week for Four-Ways on WWE programming. Like I said, it really seems like everyone involved is extra motivated with the big stakes on the line.
Ethan Page vs Sean Legacy: Legacy is an exciting newcomer, and Page is a super crafty veteran who knows how to excel doing just about anything in the ring. This was a good pairing. The challenger got to look great, and come across as someone whose time as a champion is coming much sooner than later. Meanwhile, the champion got to show why he has been chosen to be in this position in the first place.
This Week’s Playlist: “Turn Around” by T.I., Young Dro & 2 Chainz… “Immortal 99” by Dominus Dizzy & Bizzy Bone… “Death Above Life” by Orbit Culture… “Eating My Heart Out” by Wind Walkers… “YOU” by Adept… “Baby Blue” by Action Bronson & Chance The Rapper… “Strictly 4 My Jeeps” by Action Bronson… “Tip Toe Wing In My Jawwwdinz” by Riff Raff… “TiP TOE 3” by Riff Raff & Chief Keef… “TiP TOE 4” by Riff Raff & Yelawolf… “Heaven” by Warrant… “I Remember You” by Skid Row… “Two Tickets To Paradise” by Eddie Money… “Love and Honesty” by Hawaiian Style Band… “Jealous” by Maoli… “Guns & Roses” by Jay-Z & Lenny Kravitz… “Sinister Mob” by E-40 & Nate Dogg… “And You Be Loved” by Damian Marley… “Tease Me” by Chaka Demus & Pliers… “Everything About You” by Ugly Kid Joe… “Three Little Pigs” by Green Jelly… “Love Sosa” by Chief Keef… “Hustle Blood” by Big Boi & Jamie Foxx… “Shoot Outs” by Jadakiss & Styles P… “Head Turner” by Rittz… “Box Chevy” by Yelawolf & Rittz… “Beamer, Benz or Bentley” by Lloyd Banks & Juelz Santana… “Homies & Thugs” by Scarface, 2Pac & Master P… “John The Revelator” by Curtis Stigers & The Forest Rangers… “Epic” by Faith No More
