WWE Raw teases Sami Zayn trade, burns Eva Marie

Published Dec. 14, 2016 8:42 a.m. ET

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Nick Schwartz

WWE SmackDown general manager Daniel Bryan has been very open about his desire to bring a few (arguably under-utilized) stars from the Raw roster over to his rival show, and after the events of Monday night's episode, it seems like a roster swap could soon become a reality.

[UPDATE]: This week on Raw, Mick Foley refused to give Sami Zayn a match against Braun Strowman, leading Zayn to declare that he doesn't want to remain on Raw. Foley said he would call Daniel Bryan and "work out a trade."

[UPDATE No. 2]: It was all a set-up by Mick Foley. Foley came to have Zayn sign his trade paper, and revealed that he agreed with Daniel Bryan to swap Zayn for a star of equal talent - Eva Marie. Zayn was furious, claiming that he was worth "1,000 Eva Maries," and a shouting match between Zayn and Foley led to Foley making a match between Zayn and Strowman at Roadblock. It's a disappointing result for both shows, as Zayn would be a better fit on SmackDown, and WWE just completely buried Eva Marie.

Sami Zayn had a chance to win the Intercontinental Championship and bring the title to Raw at Survivor Series, but interference from Maryse allowed The Miz to retain his title. The loss left Zayn in a weird spot on the Raw roster - he's not a part of the Universal title picture, there are currently no challengers for Roman Reigns' U.S. title, and the championship he would logically be pursuing (the Intercontinental belt) is stuck on the other show.

In a strange turn of events, Mick Foley chose to punish Zayn for his loss - even though there was a controversial finish - by forcing him to have a match against the colossal Braun Strowman last week. It didn't end well for the 210 pound Canadian.

Last night, Zayn rushed to the ring after Strowman reduced R-Truth to dust to pick a fight with Strowman, only to have Foley show up and chastise him for even trying. Foley passionately argued that he was saving Zayn from himself - losing his teeth in the process - and Zayn responded that he needed to be saved from Foley.

Right on cue, Daniel Bryan made his pitch to Zayn on Twitter.

Zayn seems like he'd be a perfect fit for SmackDown, where he could flourish in feuds with The Miz or Dolph Ziggler, or even move up into the WWE World title picture with AJ Styles and Dean Ambrose. He could stay on Raw and continue his David vs. Goliath spat with Strowman, but that's a lose-lose proposition for WWE. If Zayn defeats Strowman, the former Wyatt family member no longer looks like the most intimidating foe on the roster - while if Zayn loses, he'll look bad. A move to SmackDown would give Zayn a fresh start, and if Raw needs someone in return, Baron Corbin has been trying to get himself fired by Daniel Bryan for a while.

It should be noted that Zayn is currently one of the stars already being advertised for the Raw-exclusive pay-per-view Roadblock on December 18th, and that's usually a pretty definite sign that they'll be there barring injury.

Daniel Bryan's also been a huge supporter of Cesaro.

— Daniel Bryan (@WWEDanielBryan) November 29, 2016

— Cesaro (@WWECesaro) November 22, 2016

— Cesaro (@WWECesaro) November 25, 2016

[pullquote align="center" attribution=""]Dear @iLikeSamiZayn, #TeamBlue will never hold you back #BlueIsBetter[/pullquote][pullquote align="center" attribution=""]Dear @WWECesaro, when does your Raw contract end? We'd love to have you on #SmackdownLive :) — Daniel Bryan (@WWEDanielBryan) September 27, 2016[/pullquote][pullquote align="center" attribution=""]I'm tired of it[/pullquote][pullquote align="center" attribution=""]Coming over to #SmackdownLive might make you less tired https://t.co/dojVVBoZz0 — Daniel Bryan (@WWEDanielBryan) November 22, 2016[/pullquote][pullquote align="center" attribution=""]When you can't even make it onto the poster for the show in your home country...#2swiss #2tearsinabucket pic.twitter.com/1YlBnotO9T[/pullquote][pullquote align="center" attribution=""]If you were on #TeamBlue you'd be on every poster... just saying #BlueIsBetter https://t.co/flldEN2BwV — Daniel Bryan (@WWEDanielBryan) November 25, 2016[/pullquote]

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