Figure Four Weekly 1/2/2017: WWE’s transformative 2016

Though the malaise of three-hour Raws and seemingly constant content often made it difficult to appreciate in the moment, 2016 was a transformative year for WWE that featured high points in diverse in-ring action.

Some of the same problems that have long existed still remain as we enter the New Year. Raws are, indeed, too long. Main event booking on the flagship show has been as stale as ever with the same handful of talents being shuffled around without a compelling direction. And even with the influx of new talent into the company last year, many of them haven’t been used to their full potential.

But those problems don’t outshine what was the best year in company history in terms of match quality. WWE has never before had as many excellent matches in a given year. The roster has never had so many talented workers.

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