Over the years, wrestling fans have seen a handful of transcendent performers shape their generations. Today, the wrestling world is full of young performers with future star potential but there's only one Seth "Freakin'" Rollins. Rollins has been a cornerstone in WWE for the past decade. He's thrived as both a babyface and heel, though his true calling is as a heel.
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Since single-handedly disbanding The Shield in 2014, Rollins has been a perennial main event star. As such, Rollins often finds himself in tag team matches. Some of his partners over the years have been worthy of standing beside him. A few others only brought "The Architect" down to their level.
10 Best: Buddy Murphy
Part of the responsibilities of being a top star in any wrestling promotion is getting other talents over as either partners or opponents. In 2020, Seth Rollins tried to do just that when he took the talented Buddy Murphy under his wing. This coincided with Rollins' evolution as "The Monday Night Messiah."
As Rollins' Disciple, Murphy got his only real taste of success in WWE. He repeatedly main event shows with Rollins and even captured the Raw Tag Team Championships alongside him. Unfortunately, WWE wouldn't capitalize on this run and Murphy would be released in 2021.
9 Worst: Sheamus
Pro wrestling can be a weird profession to find success in. Many times, fans can be fickle and indecisive. They can love a performer one minute and completely cool on them the next. Sheamus' steady decline in popularity is a great example of that. In the early 2010s, Sheamus was as over as any babyface on WWE's roster.
Eventually, though, the WWE audience would grow tired of "The Celtic Warrior" and his popularity would begin to slide. Regardless in 2015, Sheamus received a heavy heel push. This included teaming with a heel Rollins on a few occasions. Their pairings wouldn't prove to be anything worth remembering.
8 Best: Randy Orton
One of the secrets behind pro wrestling is surprising the audience. When fans get caught off guard with something they never saw coming, it makes for a great reaction and a deeper emotional investment. It's safe to say Seth Rollins turning on his Shield brethren fell into the category of "shocking."
The turn instantaneously made Rollins one of the biggest heels in the business. It also made Rollins a member of The Authority. In the Authority, Rollins often found himself teaming with Randy Orton. Orton played the role of a somewhat reluctant mentor to Rollins. Their partnership would eventually evolve into a great rivalry when Oroton left The Authority.
7 Worst: Kurt Angle
Most sports fans have heard the adage "Father Time is undefeated" over and over again ad nauseum. It's because in any sport, perhaps truer words have never been spoken. No matter the caliber of athlete, age will eventually rob them of the athleticism necessary to perform at the high level they're accustomed to. This was certainly true with the legendary Kurt Angle.
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Unfortunately, by the time Angle finally made it back to WWE in 2017, he was terribly broken down, physically. Still, Angle competed alongside Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose as Roman Reigns' replacement at TLC 2017. It was great to see for nostalgia purposes but it was hardly Angle's best performance.
6 Best: Kevin Owens
Despite what some fans think, success in the wrestling business isn't only measured by championships. After all, pro wrestling is a business, not a shoot professional sport. A performer's job is to hook the audience and make them feel something, not win a match or championship. This is why the pairing of Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens over the years has been so great. Both guys make fans feel something, one way or the other.
As a team, Rollins and Owens don't have the greatest win/loss record, but that's honestly irrelevant. What does matter is the great chemistry that the two have with each other inside the ring and on the mic. If Rollins and Owens continue teaming occasionally, it's only a matter of time before they capture tag team gold.
5 Worst: Braun Strowman
Ever since buying WWE from his father in the 80s, Vince McMahon has implemented his vision of what a wrestling promotion should look like. Physically speaking, McMahon loves big beefy performers who look like a million bucks. This explains why McMahon was so high on Braun Strowman once upon a time.
To be fair, Strowman is an athletic freak, who, if booked properly, could've been a big contributor for WWE. The problem was WWE never booked Strowman correctly. Regardless, Strowman often found himself in big spots while in WWE. This included a less than stellar run alongside Seth Rollins as Raw Tag Team Champions in 2019. Strowman would be released from WWE in 2021.
4 Best: Roman Reigns
It's not rare in the wrestling business for two former stablemates to go on to become rivals. It is rare however for every member of a stable to reach the top of the wrestling business. The Shield wasn't just any typical stable though. When it's all said and done, The Shield might go down as the greatest stable in WWE history.
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The group spawned three bonafide main eventers and World Champions. Two of them, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, are still pillars for WWE. As partners, Reigns and Rollins had a lengthy run as WWE Tag Team Champions. That chemistry has carried over as opponents. WWE will likely revisit the Rollins/Reigns storyline multiple times before their careers are over. Simply put, the two make magic moments together.
3 Worst: J & J Security
The sign of a true pro wrestling megastar is being able to elevate lesser talents around you. When Seth Rollins first broke away from The Shield in 2014, there might've been some fans who questioned whether he was a burgeoning megastar. It's safe to safe Rollins put any of those doubts to bed.
One of the ways Rollins proved his star power was by elevating enhancement talents like Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury. Before Rollins, both Nobel and Mercury were forgotten names. After serving as Rollins' personal security and teaming with him on several occasions, J & J Security got over. Their run with Rollins eventually ended though, sending both performers back into obscurity
2 Best: Dean Ambrose
Despite the captivating action going on inside the ring, the story behind that action is where pro wrestling's real magic lies. One of the best stories WWE has told over the past decade is that of The Shield. The group started as vigilante "Hounds Of Justice" and eventually became one of the most popular groups in WWE history.
After their breakup, WWE focused on a rivalry between Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. Their feud helped solidify both men as legitimate stars. After years of being rivals, Rollins and Ambrose would bury the hatchet in 2018. From there, they'd go on to form a dominant unit, winning the Raw Tag Team Championships together, twice. Eventually, Ambrose would turn on Rollins, and the two would become rivals again. They'd make up one last time before Ambrose left WWE in April 2018 though.
1 Worst: Corporate Kane
Throughout the years, wrestling fans have seen various legendary performers tweak their gimmicks a bit. In some cases, the changes have a positive effect. In other cases, the changes only serve to damage a character. Kane is one of the most revered performers in WWE history but when he showed the world his corporate side in 2014, it almost hurt his legacy.
As part of The Authority, Kane would trade his mask for a business suit and change his demonic ways. During this time, Kane repeatedly found himself tagging with The Authority's golden boy, Seth Rollins. Unfortunately for Kane, those pairings usually made him look weak and vulnerable. Mercifully, The Corporate Kane character was eventually scrapped.
