10 Failed WWE Signings That Should Have Worked

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• There have been many wrestlers over the years who haven't succeeded in WWE, with the list of failed performers being too long to count. The list for those with big expectations who fans expected to succeed but didn't is a shorter one (though still too long when you consider the legacies of some of the talents who wrestled in WWE over the years). Whether it be those who established themselves elsewhere or performers who had the looks of a star, there have been many underwhelming signings. This will further take a look at the length of their spells in WWE between their signature and them parting ways.

Highlights

• Not all notable signings in WWE lead to success; some wrestlers, like Barry Windham and Mike Awesome, struggled to meet expectations and had limited runs.
• Poor creative decisions and talent not adapting to their new surroundings can contribute to a failed signing, as seen with Public Enemy and Nathan Jones.
• Sometimes, a signing just doesn't work out due to various factors, such as Mike Adamle's inability to pick up the environment fast enough and Buff Bagwell's terrible performance and backstage fight with Shane Helms.

WWE signing noteworthy wrestling free agents is always going to create attention in the wrestling world. The biggest promotion adding names with some value on the free agent market usually works out well. Signings of names like Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar and Chris Jericho showed how great things can work out for the best case.

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However, there have been the other instances of signings struggling to live up to the expectations. WWE witnessed these names having limited runs with minimal contributions. Some instances featured the talent at fault for not being able to adapt to the new surroundings, but other scenarios were due to the poor creative. The one constant for the following names is that they were failed WWE signings that should have worked out better.

UPDATE: 2024/01/17 07:30 EST BY ANDREW KELLY

There have been many wrestlers over the years who haven't succeeded in WWE, with the list of failed performers being too long to count. The list for those with big expectations who fans expected to succeed but didn't is a shorter one (though still too long when you consider the legacies of some of the talents who wrestled in WWE over the years). Whether it be those who established themselves elsewhere or performers who had the looks of a star, there have been many underwhelming signings. This will further take a look at the length of their spells in WWE between their signature and them parting ways.

10 Barry Windham Was An Established Star Who Failed In WWE

Terrible Gimmicks Represented Windham's WWE Career

Barry Windham was a former NWA Heavyweight Champion and established WCW main eventer when he joined WWE. The assumption was that WWE would want to continue using him as an upper card act based on his previous success.

Windham’s first WWE stint only lasted a few months as the Widowmaker, but he returned in the mid-90s. Another short run featured him flopping with the new characters of The Stalker and one half of the recycled New Blackjacks tag team with JBL.

9 Mike Awesome Was An Underused In-Ring Talent

WWE Gave Up Quickly On Mike Awesome

The end of WCW getting purchased by WWE led to them extending deals to certain names that weren’t taking the Time Warner/AOL opt-in to sit out the rest of their established WCW contracts. Mike Awesome was one of the names to get a WWE offer.

The signing should have worked since Awesome was a former ECW World Champion and successful WCW mid-carder. Unfortunately, WWE didn’t value Awesome as anything more than a lower mid-carder, and he was removed from television shortly into the Invasion.

8 Public Enemy Became Backstage Enemies In WWE

Public Enemy Didn't Spent Long In WWE

WWE signing Public Enemy was meant to have the same impact that the Dudley Boyz had a few months later. The hardcore tag team used tables as their weapons of choice and came over to WWE after a short WCW stint.

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Even though Public Enemy never hit their peak, they had a solid run in WCW after breaking out in ECW. Johnny Grunge and Rocco Rock unfortunately ran into hot water when finding backstage heat in the locker room. The APA destroyed Public Enemy in a Sunday Night Heat match and sent them packing shortly after their debut.

7 WWE Fans Found Mike Adamle Boring

Mike Adamle Was A Dud Of A Signing For WWE

The signing of Mike Adamle felt like a big deal at the time when WWE recruited a broadcaster with a strong background. Adamle was a former NFL player and achieved success as a commentator and host in the sports world.

Vince McMahon was reportedly high on Adamle playing a huge role in the future of the company. Too many botches and the inability to pick up the wrestling scene fast enough caused Adamle to have a difficult run never panning out.

6 Nathan Jones Was Removed From WrestleMania

Nathan Jones Was A Failed Ruthless Aggression Era Project

WWE signed Nathan Jones with a lot of hype after he was slowly starting his wrestling career in Australia. Jones had a great look and backstory that could have landed him success if he could improve fast enough.

Two short main roster stints each ended in huge disappointment to end his run. Jones couldn’t fit in as The Undertaker’s protégé or part of Brock Lesnar’s entourage of monster heels. The signing of Jones turned out to be a huge flop based on WWE’s expectations.

5 Buff Bagwell Was Signed From WCW And Quickly Released

WWE Didn't See Any Potential In Buff Bagwell

Buff Bagwell was one of the biggest names from WCW to join WWE during the Invasion angle. WWE signed Bagwell to a new deal when he opted out of his previous WCW contract to try his luck at becoming a star in the new promotion.

The decision turned out to be a poor one as Buff had a terrible performance against Booker T in the first WCW match on WWE television. Vince McMahon gave up on the idea of continuing WCW, and Bagwell got fired after a few weeks due to real backstage fight with Shane Helms.

4 Jerry Lynn Got Lost In The Shuffle In WWE

A Top Star In ECW Became An Afterthought

The end of ECW led to many of the top names getting a contract offer from WWE. Jerry Lynn was among the most underrated talents to sign, and he was coming off a main event run as one of the final few ECW World Champions.

WWE made Lynn an afterthought due to other ECW guys and the WCW talent coming in at the same time. Lynn won the Light Heavyweight Championship, but he was never on television and received a release shortly after dropping the belt.

3 Chris Harris Was Dumped On The Failing ECW Brand

Chris Harris Failed To Succeed In WWE

Chris Harris was one of the first unlikely names from TNA to jump ship to WWE. The start of TNA saw dozens of former WWE stars joining for the name value, but WWE was very selective about which TNA talents they added.

TNA booked Harris well in both a tremendous tag run with James Storm in America’s Most Wanted and a singles face push after the split. Harris chose to leave for WWE and received a shot on the ECW brand. A new name of Braden Walker matched his new look, being out of shape for a lackluster run that flopped.

2 Ultimo Dragon Was Another Failed Masked Wrestler In WWE

Despite His Talent, Ultimo Dragon Didn't Thrive In WWE

WWE had a string of successful signings of former WCW stars when they made the call to add Ultimo Dragon. Rey Mysterio proved to be a huge asset drawing money for WWE just months into joining as the masked underdog hero.

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Ultimo Dragon didn’t have the same appeal, but he was among the best in-ring workers in the business. WWE did put some time into his vignettes to hype up the debut. Unfortunately, he was primarily on the secondary show Velocity and never panned out.

1 Steve Williams Floundered In Brawl For All

After His Brawl For All Loss, WWE Gave Up On Steve Williams

The presence of Jim Ross hiring talents made some wrestlers question his close friend “Dr. Death” Steve Williams getting hired with plans of a huge push. WWE booked the Brawl for All with the intent of Williams winning the real fights and becoming a top contender to Steve Austin.

Dr. Death getting upset and knocked out by Bart Gunn in the tournament ruined those plans. Injuries doomed the rest of Williams’ run leading to him getting released by WWE. Fans barely got to see anything from Williams despite the hype for his signing.