The WWE is going to mine NFL roster cuts for the next superstar in their organization. And really, it's not a bad idea when you look at the sport's success rate in professional wrestling.
When you think of some of the biggest names in wrestling in recent years, many got their start in football. The Rock played football at the U. Stone Cold Steve Austin was Steve Williams at North Texas. Bill Goldberg was a draft pick of the Los Angeles Rams. And one of my favorites you might remember, Brian Pillman, spent some time with the Cincinnati Bengals.
With that in mind, here are six NFLers who would do pretty well in the WWE. And in case you missed it, Eric Davis and Mark Kriegel made the case for Terrell Suggs and Tim Tebow, respectively. I would disagree with Tebow, though. First off, he couldn't be a face. Well, maybe in Florida. He could do kind of a Bret Hart thing where he's jeered in arenas across the country and gets a face pop in Florida. Or at least Jacksonville. Tebow's shtick is basically John Cena's act, so I'm not sure that works.
And Clay Matthews? Too obvious. And Justin Tuck's facemask seems like a natural for the WWE, too.
Quick warning, this is about to get geeky. You've been warned.
And without further ado ...
I see Urlacher as a Paul Heyman guy. Maybe he could team up with CM Punk to form a stable called the Second City Saints. The only problem is Ryback is kind of doing the Goldberg-rip off thing, which would have been natural for Urlacher. Wait I got it; Urlacher could be one of the top wrestlers for years and never win a title. Just like he did in the NFL.
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Jared Allen
There are a couple of ways you could handle Allen. He could debut as Zeb Colter's new protégé only to have him eventually turn on Jack Swagger. Maybe you could revive a Hillbilly gimmick with Allen as one of the new Godwinns. But the best would be him hog-tying his opponents after a victory. And let's not forget the fake mullet wigs the WWE could sell. He'd be a money-maker for sure.
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Steve Smith
He might not be a giant by WWE standards, but he certainly talks a great game and could be a fantastic cruiserweight. The only problem is he would be too good. And 30 seconds into his debut, HHH would charge out of the back and bury him for good because he's HHH. Or he'd bring back Kevin Nash and let him do it.
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Chris Kluwe
The WWE could use another three-man stable to battle The Shield (who should be faces in a matter of weeks because the crowds won't stop cheering for them). Kluwe's intellectualism makes him a perfect partner for the Rhodes Scholars. Or if CM Punk doesn't return, maybe Jim Ross could bring him in as the Fake Punk, because it worked out so well in 1996. I guess that would mean he eventually becomes Kane. Hmm, I'm overthinking this one.
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Rob Gronkowski
Putting Gronkowski in here is as gratuitous as it is inevitable (and here I left off Matthews). If you've seen him botch moves on the dance floor, no worries. Pair him with Dolph Ziggler who makes everybody's offense look better. Or even Sheamus who doesn't mind working stiff. Best of all? With a cast on his arm, Gronk can revive the Cowboy Bob Orton gimmick from way back when.
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Richard Sherman
This guy was born to be a professional wrestler. You know, if that whole football career hadn't got in his way. I'd have him go by Dick Sherman and join the Prime Time Players. Then have him break away to become a megastar. His "You mad bro?" would become the new "If you smell what the Rock is cooking". He'd quickly be a superstar making "The Fast and the Furious" and "G.I. Joe" movies in no time.
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Adam Rank has never won an award. For anything. We don't mean to be harsh, but it's true. He certainly won't after leaving Clay Matthews off this list. You can follow him on Twitter @adamrank. Oh, and if you liked this (right!), check him out on the latest "Dave Dameshek Football Program". Which, come to think of it won an award. So Rank has won something meaningful. Yes, meaningful unlike this latest post. Am I right? But follow him on Twitter, please. He's taking us to lunch if he gets 25 more Twitter followers today.