Does John Cena Bury WWE Talent?

Since debuting at the 2016 Royal Rumble, perhaps no one has had more success in WWE than AJ Styles. His accomplishments range from WWE Championships to beating Shane McMahon at WrestleMania 33. But maybe his most lauded achievement is beating WWE demi-god, John Cena twice.

Styles spent the second half of 2016 and the first month of 2017 feuding with the 16x WWE Champion. Their program was one of the best in recent memory and it ended in January when Cena beat Styles at the Royal Rumble to tie Ric Flair for most World Championships.

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Like many wrestlers, since leaving Cena, Styles has cooled off a bit. But does the Phenomenal One hold any resentment or feelings of being "buried?" He answered this question on the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast:

"I learned a lot from him. It's just the little things that he does. People aren't going to like this, but I'm telling you, I'd say 90% of the things I've learned that I felt helped me tremendously is John Cena. The guy… there's a reason he was able to stay on for more than 10 years and do what he has done in his career."

On the stigma of Cena burying talent:

"I don't think that's true. It's up to you, if you leave after your storyline with John Cena to carry on what you've been called. Exactly, exactly. That's all it is and if you continue to do that, you'll find a way to get to whatever spot it is."

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This is the take that needs to be heard. Fans and, sometimes even wrestlers, blame John Cena for being a momentum killer. Names like Rusv, Wade Barret, and Bray Wyatt are quick examples that do point to a trend. But as Styles mentioned, how could that possibly be John Cena's fault?

As the face of a billion dollar company, John Cena is going to win a lot of his matches. There's just not much money in a guy that loses all the time. That said, why wouldn't a wrestler look at the opportunity to lose against Cena as a blessing. A feud with John Cena is the highest peak in WWE. If they can't take advantage of that, then maybe they aren't as good as they, or we, thought they were.

Losing to John Cena made AJ Styles a player in WWE. Sure, he won a few times, but he lost a huge match with championship implications. Right now, he's not WWE Champion or even US champion for that matter, but he's still arguably the most important wrestler on Smackdown. The concept of Cena burying talent is a lesson in perspective, not conspiracy.