Want to improve the WWE RAW ratings? Who doesn’t??? Steve Cook has your solution. Actually, he has 5 of them!

We all know that there’s one thing that’s grabbed the attention of wrestling fans throughout 2020:

Ratings!

Whether it’s the Wednesday Night War between AEW Dynamite & WWE NXT, or the various ups & downs of Raw & SmackDown, everybody wants to talk about those television ratings. It’s what we learned was important back in the 1990s, and it’s still what we talk about now.

Raw is seeing some low numbers. How will WWE turn things around? Believe it or not, I have five ideas…

5. Change the leadership

Hey, I’m not out here bashing Bruce Prichard. Dude has been doing a good job with SmackDown & does serve as the best Vince McMahon filter out there. That being said, you can only stretch Bruce and some of the other writers so far before they snap. 5 hours of live TV every week with a eclectic cast of characters and a demanding boss is a big ask.

It shows on Raw when people are sent out there to wrestle for 30 minutes…the matches are typically fine, but I know I often find myself distracted by my various screens, look up at Raw 15 minutes later and am stunned a particular match is still going with no end in sight. Its filling time. Nothing more, nothing less. There’s no urgency in most of these matches other than to help fill the 3 hour timeslot. Since the 3 hour timeslot isn’t going anywhere because Neilsen counts it as 3 different shows, we have to address the problem of most of the show serving as filler. Get some new ideas in there.

4. Adult Content?

A report came out stating that USA was “furious” over this past week’s rating. I pause on the idea of whether the report is true or if USA has the right to be “furious” considering that Raw still easily outpaces the rest of their lineup. However, another part of the report struck me as interesting…apparently USA would like to see more “dark, violent adult content” on Raw.

I’ve always been reticent to criticize WWE for going PG, because I remember the type of adult content WWE was producing before the switch. Hot Lesbian Action. Kane being a necrophiliac. I’ve never wanted to go back to those glory days of WWE television. I think I see where USA is coming from here. If you take a look at what’s viewed most on Netflix, a lot of it would be classified as “dark, violent adult content”. My own viewing habits drift in that direction. If I see a new documentary up about some serial killer or another violent event, I’m watching that sumbitch. Currently watching “The Ripper”, as a matter of fact. It’s what the people want to see!

Can WWE replicate that? Well, they’ve got more than enough bodies on their roster. You could wipe some out and nobody would notice.

3. Stick with a new idea longer.

Remember back in August when Raw was debuting all of these new ideas to get some attention? You had Raw Underground, which was Shane McMahon’s new fight club concept. Retribution popped up right around the same time as a new heel group looking to make waves and bring WWE down. People were skeptical about both ideas. One of the largest reasons I wasn’t 100% sure about either one was I knew that WWE would give up on both the minute that they had an excuse. It’s what they’ve done for years…trot out something new, give up on it if it doesn’t get over the right way right away.

Sure enough, Raw Underground hasn’t been seen in months. The covid outbreak at WWE’s Performance Center was enough of a reason to junk it. As for Retribution, they went from being a threat to WWE to a lower-card heel group targeting the likes of Ricochet & Dana Brooke.

It’s hard for us to care & tune in to see new concepts when we have the feeling WWE will give up on them immediately.

2. Relax. Football season is almost over.

This happens every year. Raw ratings take a tumble from September to December, which happens to be when ESPN airs Monday Night Football. We all know that nobody beats the NFL. Doesn’t happen. The numbers get a little lower every year due to competition from streaming services and other ways to consume entertainment.

Then, the calendar turns over and football’s regular season is over. Which happens to coincide with the Royal Rumble and the beginning of the WrestleMania push. Ratings go up because the stakes are higher, and the NFL games are all on Saturday & Sunday. ESPN’s airing college basketball, which isn’t as big of an obstacle for Raw.

Give it a month, and people will be talking about Raw’s ratings rebound. It’ll happen whether WWE does anything out of the ordinary or not.

1. Bring some people back!

We all know that WWE sees its best ratings when the old stars are around. I can think of two that would be especially helpful to WWE right now. One, obviously, is Brock Lesnar. Everybody reading this knows that Brock is the greatest of all time, and should always be holding one of WWE’s main championships. OK, I was being a little sarcastic there, but bringing Brock back to Raw would certainly help. We could also get Paul Heyman on both shows, building up the eventual collision between his champions.

The other star WWE could bring back? Well, it’s somebody that’ll have more free time on their hands in about a month. A person that’s a proven ratings draw wherever he goes, including WWE. I’m not a big fan myself, but I know there are a ton of people that would tune in just to hear him and what he has to say. And let’s face it, Linda McMahon raised enough money for the man that he surely owes her family a favor.

Yep, it’s time to bring Donald Trump back to Raw. Tell me that wouldn’t provide a ratings boost!