For the rest of the NFL season, I’ll be doing a pro football round-up and how the pro wrestling world collides with the stars and teams of the National Football League.

Week 6 of the NFL had one WWE Hall of Famer stopping by the forthcoming WrestleMania 41 grounds in Las Vegas and an AEW star becoming the “Twelfth Man” for his homestate Seattle Seahawks. Plus there’s some “mojo” going down with Rob Gronkowski and the actor playing him. Let’s kick it off.

Rey Mysterio Rocks Raiders Silver & Black

While last week’s write-up showcased the Steelers heavily, this week we have Rey Mysterio to thank for the spotlight being shown on their opponent in the Las Vegas Raiders. WWE is revving up to crash the Las Vegas strip next year at WrestleMania 41, but before they do they teased the fans a little with a special appearance by Mysterio, Titus O’Neil and Samatha Irvin (who actually sang the national anthem before the game).

Mysterio took photos before kickoff with some of the players and later with the fans, but it wasn’t enough for them to thwart Pittsburgh, who made Aidan O’Connell and the Raider offense walk the plank 32-13.

Darby Allin Soars With The Seattle Seahawks

Pro wrestling became a factor in the very first game of week six when the Seattle Seahawks battled NFC East rival San Francisco in a Thursday night game. Considering AEW was in the area for their upcoming WrestleDream PPV on Saturday, AEW pillar Darby Allin popped by complete with his signature pink jacket. However, it was the 49ers who put the Coffin Drop on Seattle by winning 36-24.

Mojo Rawley ‘Gets Hyped’ For Gronk Actor In ‘Aaron Hernandez: American Sports Story’

Mojo Rawley (Dean Muhtadi) may not be grappling it up in the ring at the moment, but the former WWE star keeps busy being a notable TMZ personality. Rawley had some fun news to talk about this week as family and friendship collided this week in a viral moment involving FX’s dark story behind deceased NFL tight end, Aaron Hernandez. The show has created a lot of buzz with the portrayals of notable NFL names like Bill Belicheck and Robert Kraft, but a shining star is the one actor playing Rob Gronkowski.

Gronk notoriously has a history with WWE and is a former teammate of the aformentioned Rawley at the University of Maryland. However, both have ties to the actor playing Gronk, Laith Wallschleger. Laith is a former D1 from the University of Delaware (alma mater of Joe Flacco – Blue Hens!) before spending some time in the NFL until making the trip to Hollywood. He now finds steady work as a stuntman, voice actor and now got eyes as Gronkowski. During an interview with Kay Adams, Gronkowski actually revealed that Wallschleger is his acting double for everything he does and the two are good friends. Rawley noted that Laith is actually his cousin!

The good vibes from Laith didn’t translate for the actual Patriots on the field this week as they got stampeded by the Houston Texans 41-21.

Trevor Lee Celebrates A Ravens Win

Trevor Lee is currently a free agent in the world of pro wrestling, but he was flying to the moon during the Baltimore Ravens game against in-state adversary the Washington Commanders. For many, the game may have been tighter than expected, but the Ravens rode the legs Derrick Henry who trounced the Commanders in an effort to win by just a touchdown. Lee had a video of himself celebrating at the game following the team’s fourth straight win.

Wrestling Related Games Win-Loss Record

Not a good week for the teams with pro wrestling ties as three of the four teams took an L, with Trevor Lee’s Ravens getting the only W.

After four weeks, wrestling related NFL stories stand even at 9-9.

Dean Muhtadi, better known to fans as Mojo, knows a thing or two about pro sports given his NFL and WWE background. He is putting all that experience to use as the company he helped co-found, Paragon Talent Agency, in partnership with DraftKings, are hosting a Wrestler’s Combine on September 4. The event is run in collaboration with Black Label Pro Wrestling. 

The athletic competition coincides with the card of matches, part of the Crowning Glory event in Chicago. Mojo will co-host the festivities along with “Tough Enough” winner Maven and Emmy-winning interviewer Chris Van Vliet. The show is actually streaming on Vilet’s YouTube channel.

This unique happening has an impressive list of famous faces including Moose, Jordynne Grace, Parker Boudreaux, Ash by Elegance, Xia Li (Zhao Xia), Mandy Sacs, Riddick Moss (Mike Rallis), and Jake Hager. For Mojo, the Wrestler’s Combine has been in the works for a while. 

“The concept itself is pretty cool. Pro wrestling is a completely different business than the NFL, but the NFL has some cool things they do that we don’t have in the wrestling world.

One of them is the NFL Combine where they bring in all the talent and find out who is the fastest and who is the strongest as a recruiting tool to see who is going to be picked up in the NFL Draft. Pro wrestling, we don’t have anything liek that. The idea was to bring that to the wrestling world.” 

– Mojo Rawley

There are four women and four men competing in the combine itself. The participants will be put through four events. This includes who can run the ropes the fastest, arm wrestling, a wrestler’s twist on tug-of-war, and a shoot collar and elbow tie-up. Mojo stresses it’s all a legit competition. There are bragging rights and reputations on the line.

Agents and the Lack of Unionions in Pro Wrestling

The big names attached to the event have connections to Mojo’s agency. Something he wanted to do for a while with the idea that players in the NFL had all this fancy representation like any other major sports. So, why couldn’t pro wrestlers have access to these services as well? 

“You go to wrestling, there is no union. There are barely representatives of any kind,” Mojo explained. “There are no full-circle 360 representatives out there for people. The idea was to start the first one for pro wrestling. COVID started the company sooner than I meant for it to because COVID ended my career with WWE abruptly. I had to find a way to pivot. 

I’ve always been a guy who thought out Plan B should things go wrong. I started Paragon the first day I was a free man after I called one of my best friends Steve Kaye, who has a legitimate business background as well. I told him what I wanted to do and it took him 15 seconds to hear about this thing and jumped in. 

– Mojo Rawley

Mojo and Kaye put their MBAs, acumen for the biz and contacts into their new venture. It took off with Mojo saying they’ve done paid deals for 350 talent. “That tells you right there how much of a need there was for something like this,” he added. “…One is to help out the talent, but two, reintroduce the outside world to what pro wrestlers are capable of.” 

WWE NIL

The landscape is a lot different place than when Mojo started his pro wrestling journey from the gridiron more than a decade ago. He is impressed with WWE’s NIL and recruitment approach, which has given them a wealth of emerging talent in recent years. 

“They put a lot of weight and money behind it. Way more than they were doing before. I felt like before they were subscribing to the approach that you throw as much against the wall as you can and see what sticks.

It’s not a terrible strategy. I know that sounds like I’m downplaying the legitimacy of a strategy like that. But when you have a revolving door, you sink or swim, get in and get out. That way works for a lot of people. I think now they are doing their due diligence a lot more.

They are going out and finding these college athletes and seeing what they are about, signing them and locking them in early before they potentially blow up in their careers and go another route. It is a smart thing to do. You see college programs offering children scholarships sometimes. I had a buddy who played for the Arizona Cardinals. He was born as the biggest baby in Louisiana. I think LSU offered him a scholarship the day he was born. Guess what? He went to the school later on, so these things actually can work out for you.” 

– Mojo Rawley

By the same token, Mojo thinks recruiting off the indies is also a lot more streamlined. He makes the point that we’re seeing some of the current signed WWE talent go and wrestle or do autograph signings and appearances at independent promotions. He states that was never a thing before and the “floodgates are open.” He credits this in part to the existence of AEW. 

NFL Players Doing Wrestling

Before his WWE release, Mojo looked to be cooking something big with his buddy Rob Gronkowski. The Super Bowl champ ended up going back for one last, ditching his pro wrestling aspirations. However, Mojo doesn’t rule out a return for “Gronk” one day. He also assesses if we’ll see Patrick Mahomes, or Travis and Jason Kelce in the ring as well. 

“‘Gronk’ is the only one that is retired. From a logistics standpoint, you have to think it’s him [first]. He loves pro wrestling. We certainly planned on doing a lot more together, but life takes you to different places and everyone goes on to the next thing,” Mojo said. “The Kelces have been to WWE shows. They’ve done well. They have the personality for it. Mohomes  is probably last on the list of who you will see do stuff.” 

– Mojo Rawley

For Mojo, it comes to passion and a deep-rooted desire to do it. Mostly because they surely don’t need the money. 

“Honestly, with a lot of those guys, you’ll probably only see a one-off or pay-per-view with the buildup for a couple of months,” Mojo added. “It’s very hard to take somebody who is making $10 to $50 million a year and pay them a fraction of that but ask them to get their ass kicked more and train for something brand new after they already made it to the tippy top of NFL or pro sports. 

“…Honestly, the person who has come close to that has been Moose. Moose was a seven-year starter in the NFL and he left football to come to wrestling and came to wrestling. He didn’t come to WWE and get offered a fat contract. He just left football because he liked wrestling better…That doesn’t happen. I give him all the credit in the world for that. AJ Francis is another example of that. He was a starter as well in the NFL. He and I were college teammates. I remember back when we were playing ball together. Even when he was in the NFL, he would say he was just biding my time until I got a shot at WWE. I would leave the NFL in two seconds to go do that. I love that more. Then he actually did…He started over to make nothing at NXT.” 

– Mojo Rawley

Coming Out of Retirement

As for if we’ll ever see Mojo in the ring again, that’s another story. It’s a return four years and counting in the making. 

“I’m absolutely going to wrestle again at some point,” he stated. “I don’t know when it’s going to be or where it’s going to be. I thought it would have been by now, but I’ve been so busy with Paragon, which I guess is a good problem to have. I feel like my contributions to the pro wrestling business through Paragon had been way better, way bigger, and way more important than anything I could have possibly done in-ring. With all these booking wrestlers for gigs, it just gets you reminiscent in your field a little bit. I’m going to have to do something at some point.” 

– Mojo Rawley

For more on everything Crowning Glory, check out the Black Label Pro website.

WWE once had plans for a blockbuster match pitting Mercdes Mone against Megan Thee Stallion, according to WWE alum Mojo Rawley. 

Rawley was in attendance for the recent Crunchyroll Anime Awards and was there to support Mone, who presented alongside Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence. The All-Elite talent presented the Best Slice of Life Award and was spotted with Megan Thee Stallion. 

Megan Thee Stallion Vs. Mercedes Mone

Appearing on Mandy Rose & Tino Sabatelli’s Power Alphas podcast, Mojo Rawley spoke about meeting Megan Thee Stallion, who was also at the awards ceremony. The former WWE 24/7 Champion then shared that WWE had something planned for her at a previous year’s SummerSlam.

“She was going to do something with Mercedes at WWE SummerSlam in years previous, and it just never materialized and fell through for one reason or another. We all know how those situations can go.”

Mojo added that Stallion was “cool” and far taller than he first thought. He didn’t give a year as to when she was going to be involved with WWE. It was reported in 2021 that WWE had planned to have Stallion do something, though that never materialized. 

Mercedes Mone Today

Mone never had her match with Megan Thee Stallion in WWE, and left the promotion in 2022. She joined AEW earlier this month at the Big Business Dynamite and is reportedly the highest-paid woman in wrestling. Despite her AEW arrival, Mone has said she’s sure she’ll compete for WWE again one day, which unsurprisingly went down poorly with those in AEW. 

Mojo Rawley Outside WWE

Rawley, the winner of the 2017 Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, was released from WWE in 2021. The following year, he got engaged to Gracie Tracy and the couple married in Florence, Italy that October. 

Rawley has remained in the public eye outside WWE and appeared in the G.I. Joe prequel film, Snake Eyes. He is currently a co-host for TMZ Sports which airs on Fox Sports FS1. 

Celebrity Matches

While Stallion never competed for WWE, several artists have stepped between the ropes over the years. Grammy Award-winning artist Bad Bunny has competed multiple times in WWE, while Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan appeared on ECW on TNN in 1999, years before he acquired the NWA. For TNA’s first event, country singer Toby Keith got physical with Jeff Jarrett and delivered a vertical suplex to Double-J. 

H/T – Fightful

It’s no secret that Renee Paquette is a big Cincinnati Bengals fan. In fact, she has a YouTube series with the team called Renee All Dey.

Last week, she made a deal with a former WWE Superstar who happens to be a big Kansas City Chiefs fan. Since the two teams were facing off yesterday, the two made a fun bet.

Mojo Rawley’s wager was that if the Chiefs won, Paquette would have to dress up as him and act like him on her podcast. If the Bengals won, Rawley would have to wear a hot dog costume on her show.

Bet Wager Between Renee Paquette and Mojo Rawley

The Brodough app sponsored their bet. With the app, you can create bets with others while raising money for charity. Fans could get involved with this bet by using donation links and whomever raised the most money wins the challenge and the proceeds go to the winner’s charity. Rawley’s charity of choice was Mental Health America, while Paquette chose the SPCA of Cincinnati.

• Thunder Rosa Still Has a Long Road Ahead Before AEW Return

In the end, the Bengals held on in a thrilling victory with a final of 27-24. Paquette quickly took to Instagram to celebrate via her Instastory. She also posted a reel highlighting her day.

No date has been set for when Rawley has to pay up.

Dean Muhtadi, formerly known as Mojo Rawley from his time in WWE, is now a married match. 

He got hitched in Italy, according to a TMZ story. Muhtadi also shared photos on his Instagram stories. He tied the knot with his lovely girlfriend, Gracie, at Villa Cora in Florence.

The Big Day

Mojo and Gracie’s closest friends and family were in attendance for the festivities. They had a big entrance at the reception. To show how happy he was, he danced and threw some kicks. 

Rawley wore an all-white tux for his big day while his bride sported a white dress. The couple has been together for a few years and got engaged in February.

In 2012, WWE signed him, where he first worked in NXT and later formed a tag team with Zach Ryder. Despite finding some success, they were split up after a run on the main roster. Rawley won the Andre the Giant Memorial Trophy in 2017 and also appeared at WrestleMania 36 alongside his real-life friend Rob Gronkowski, who was the show host.

Rawley was released in April 2021 alongside several other wrestlers. He has co-hosted TMZ sports and was part of the “Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins” movie since the departure.

Congratulations to the happy couple!

Wrestlers from both WWE and All Elite Wrestling were able to put their differences aside last weekend to strut their stuff as part of a fashion runway.

During a celebrity fashion show in Pittsburgh, PA, stars from both companies walked the runway, wearing outfits from David Alan Clothing.

AEW TNT Champion Wardlow was on hand to show off the clothes and removed them on the runway.

Shawn Spears gave fans a little dance during his performance, while AEW’s lawyer and manager ‘Smart’ Mark Sterling had someone play an electric violin for his walk.

Sterling also handed out business cards to those in the audience.

As for WWE, Braun Strowman walked the runway and was also billed under his real name Adam Scherr.

The event also featured former WWE Superstar Mojo Rawley.

Strutting their Stuff

It’s not just male wrestlers who have been walking the runway in the name of fashion recently.

Last week, Sasha Banks and Naomi participated in a fashion runway as part of New York Fashion Week.

This is the latest public appearance by the former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, who haven’t been seen since walking out of Monday Night Raw during the May 16, 2022, episode.

Despite belief that the pair were set to leave WWE, there has been reports that Banks and Naomi have agreed to return under the company’s new regime.

Reports have suggested that Banks and Naomi could return to WWE TV within a matter of weeks.

Wardlow Says “So Much Ruined” with MJF match at AEW Double or Nothing 2022.

Mojo Rawley believes AEW is knocking it out of the park when it comes to talent acquisitions.

AEW has been making some significant moves when it comes to signing big names. The company has inked deals with the likes of CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, and Adam Cole. It’s an exciting time for fans and the performers as well.

Wrestling Inc. spoke to Rawley, who said he believes AEW has been making all the right moves.

“The talent they’re getting over there have been awesome. I think they have a great combination of creating their own stars. They got some guys over there that are wildly entertaining to watch,” Mojo said. “They’re capturing the top free agents in the game and bringing them all together. It’s going well for them. I’m just thrilled to see how they’re doing. They’re killing it. They’re dominating. It’s good for everybody.”

Rawley saw his WWE run come to an end back in April. He was released by the promotion. Rawley had been with WWE since 2012. At the moment, Rawley is a part of projects outside of the wrestling business. With that said, he does plan to get back inside the ring at some point.

Former WWE star Mojo Rawley recently spoke to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful where he opened up about his release from the company among other things.

WWE is known for putting a lot of restrictions on the stars contracted to the promotion. Rules they have to follow not only dictate their real-life but the officials have control over their lives on social media as well.

During the interview, Rawley discussed how he feels now that he is free from such restrictions. He explained that he is once again learning what freedom smells like, now that he can do anything he wants without asking for permission:

“Now, it’s like, I’m re-learning what freedom smells and tastes like and I can do anything I want,” he said. “I don’t have to ask permission. I can start a Twitch account.

I can go to a restaurant for a nice meal and tag the restaurant on my personal social media. So, there’s a lot, man. I’m hustling. I’m busier now than I’ve ever been, which has been nuts. It just shows it was time. It’s a win-win.”

Mojo Rawley On Potential WWE Return

On the topic of whether or not a WWE comeback is possible somewhere down the line, Mojo Rawley revealed that he was told that the door was open for his return in future when he was let go by the officials:

“More or less. There was a lot that went into that. Maybe we’ll touch on that later. But, yeah, more or less it was like, ‘Hey, man. Door’s open. Good luck,”

After a nine-year-long career in WWE, Mojo Rawley was released from the organization back in April this year. His non-compete clause has expired but the former 24/7 champion has not revealed his future plans just yet.

• Mojo Rawley On Heel Turn: “I Painted My Face Like An Idiot For Nothing”

Dean Muhtadi, better known to wrestling fans as Mojo Rawley, recently took part in an interview with Chris Van Vliet. During the discussion, he talked about his heel turn and face-painted gimmick he had briefly in WWE.

“I was so against that,” Rawley said through laughter when asked about the face paint. “I really didn’t want to do that. But truthfully the sketches didn’t look half bad. I remember thinking I hope when I wear this it looks this cool…”

Rawley continued to talk about how he pitched the idea of his character looking in a mirror and hyping himself up.

“I pitched this idea of everyone looks at themselves in the mirror and everyone hypes themselves up. Everyone has that degree of vanity, let me run with it. Let me cut promos where I am berating them for their shortcoming, and you don’t know who I am talking to.”

As the storyline would continue, it would be revealed that Rawley was talking to himself in the mirror. The angle took a bit of a turn, however, and ended up involving his character drawing on his own face.

“You find out later it’s me, and we can take this whole new attitude and run with it. Somehow that lead to me losing my mind and drawing on my face, I don’t know what it became.”

Mojo Rawley On Heel Run Against Apollo Crews

Rawley would continue to say he was really excited about having a run of matches with Apollo Crews. Unfortunately, it turns out his matches were to be short and fully written out for them beforehand.

“So they booked Apollo for my debut match in this new run. We were stoked, we were like lets go out and kill it, show them what we got. Then we found out it was a 60 second match that was written out entirely for us. Two and a half weeks, then it’s that, then it’s over. I just painted my face like an idiot for nothing.”

Mojo’s comments can be heard in the player below:

While many of the recently released WWE stars are already talking to other promotions, there has been no update on the wrestling future of Mojo Rawley.

The former 24/7 champion recently spoke to TMZ sports. He spoke about a number of things during the talk such as his Hollywood ambitions, his WWE release in April earlier this year, and more.

Discussing his future in the wrestling industry, Rawley confirmed that he has not retired. The former champion said that he will make a return to the wrestling world in future but not immediately:

 “I will return to the wrestling world. Not immediately. We’re going to hype that one up pretty good. Right now we’re just going to take some time and enjoy this freedom and do a little bit of everything. Dabble and just set things up.

You better believe when I come back to wrestling it’s going to be hyped up” said Mojo Rawley, “And it’s going to be a big surprise for everybody. That’s going to be a very, very exciting day for me.”

• Mojo Rawley Teases New Gimmick In Post-WWE Career

The former NXT star was also asked about the thing he is most excited about after the release from his WWE contract. Replying to it, he said that he is excited about the fact that he can do everything now.

Rawley explained that when you are under a WWE contract, it’s your only gig. You cannot operate outside of the company. Though now he can do everything and he doesn’t has to be known for just one thing.

Mojo Rawley was released from WWE as part of the company roster cuts last month. The former Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner and 7x 24/7 Champion recently teased online that fans are about to see the “real him” when he’s free to perform again shortly.

“10 days until you get me. The real me. The version of me I’ve been so reeeeaaadddy to share with y’all for a decade,” Rawley Tweeted.

In a recent interview, Rawley spoke about the difference between training for his NFL and WWE careers.

“I was surprised to see the extent of how different the training is,” Rawley said (Transcriptions via Sportskeeda). “In football, I was a defensive lineman so my weight training was centered around achieving mass and power. I did mostly high weights and low reps. My cardio training primarily required me to operate at a high energy output for short bursts throughout a football game. Now, my cardio and weight training has to enable me to function nonstop throughout a match. I have to be able to function continuously throughout the entirety of a whole match. Quickness within a ring is more important than straight line speed on a football field. The structure of my training has changed completely but my training style has not. Intensity, conditioning, power and HYPE!”

Mojo Rawley has been officially moved to the SmackDown roster.

Rawley was previously signed to the Raw brand, and he recently appeared on SmackDown with his friend Rob Gronkowski, who is going to be the host of WrestleMania 36 on April 4.

Mojo Rawley was moved to the SmackDown section of the roster on WWE’s website. He was drafted by Raw back in October 2019 on the second night of the supplemental draft.

He then appeared on two episodes of SmackDown and even served as a special guest commentator. He also was in a segment where he abused Michael Cole, this was the same night when it was confirmed that Gronkowski is headed to WWE. On the March 20 episode of SmackDown, Rawley welcomed Gronkowski to the WWE.

Gronkowski and Mojo teamed up with Elias and took out King Baron Corbin on the episode. Gronkowski then went on to announce a match between Elias and Corbin for WrestleMania 36.

Mojo might be involved with Gronk’s storylines from here on out. It was reported that Gronk signed a deal with WWE where we could see him compete in matches in the future. We could see Mojo be involved in these matches.

Mojo has said that he would like to have a match with Gronkowski at SummerSlam in August. It would be interesting to see if it actually comes to fruition.

Related: Mojo Rawley Pitches Match With Rob Gronkowski At WWE SummerSlam

Mojo Rawley says that the empty arena SmackDown episode that aired this week was an insane event. It was certainly a surreal episode of the show and Rawley provided some details about how the situation was backstage at the arena.

Rawley appeared on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio show to discuss his friend Rob Gronkowski joining the WWE. While there, he also talked about the state of affairs from the historic SmackDown episode from the WWE Performance Center’s empty makeshift arena.

Mojo Rawley first started off by saying that he is always around at the Performance Center in Orlando because that is where he lives. He went for a vacation in the Bahamas, and when he landed there he got a text from WWE asking him if he can make it to SmackDown the next day. Rawley described his reaction to the text as, “I looked around at the beach and said… I’ll be right back.”

Mojo Rawley detailed the backstage situation at SmackDown, saying, “It was insane. [But] I was pretty excited about it. You know, being at the Performance Center having a show with no fanfare. I mean that’s what we do, what WWE is about [reacting to fans]. That’s how we gauge all of our matches. [I was] curious and intrigued to see what it was gonna be like. Not only that, like I said I’m there training every day.”

The Performance Center building in Orlando, Florida was transformed according to Mojo Rawley. He elaborated further, saying that the backstage is usually bustling with staff and other workers but this time it was like a “ghost town.”

“I just wanted to see how they would transform the building and you know what rooms are gonna be the locker rooms and where the catering was gonna be. In the meeting rooms!? It was wild, man. There was really no people in there, I mean when Smackdown started Friday, Mojo Rawley said. “I think at any given point you could be maybe see one other person in whatever room you’re in. Because the Performance Center is huge and we didn’t have that many guys on the show yesterday. So it’s like a ghost town back there, I was wondering where people kept popping out of to go into gorilla for segments.”

Quotes used in this article courtesy of Wrestlingnews.co.

Mojo Rawley thinks he has the perfect date for Rob Gronkowski to make his in-ring debut under the WWE banner. 

A few weeks ago, the former New England Patriots tight end jokingly called out his good friend in an interview with TMZ Sports. This was done all in fun. 

Rawley reacted to the challenge in an interview with TMZ where he noted that he’s up for the match but also thinks a tag team match would be fitting. In fact, he thinks the match should take place at SummerSlam. 

“We’ve been talking about doing a tag match together for a really long time,” Mojo says. SummerSlam is in Boston next year. That might be the one man!!!”

WWE holds next year’s SummerSlam pay-per-view event in Boston at the TD Garden in August. 

Stephanie McMahon Says She’d Love To Sign Rob Gronkowski & Conor McGregor

WWE has expressed interest in signing him whether that be to a full-time contract or for just a one-off match.

It appears that Gronk is on board with that idea as he recently talked about doing a Royal Rumble match in a previous appearance. Time will tell whether a deal is ever made. 

WWE star Mojo Rawley spoke with Brian Fritz of Sporting News to talk about a wide range of topics including the changes with NXT. 

For years, NXT was considered as a developmental system and to a certain degree it still is, but with the brand coming to network television, many people believe it’s now a third brand. 

This is something that Rawley talked about how he thinks the unique style of NXT has made it possible for it to be upgraded to this platform.

“Then, NXT was essentially a stepping stone, an opportunity to showcase what you’ve got with the only goal to get to the main roster.

Street Fight Set For Premiere WWE NXT Episode On USA Network

Now, there’s guys on NXT that have no desire to move to RAW or SmackDown because a lot of people don’t consider moving to RAW or SmackDown a vertical move anymore. A lot of people now consider it a horizontal move.”

Rawley also noted in this interview that NXT has a different style and that could be a fit for others. That fact has only been shown on a smaller stage on the WWE Network.

However, that will change once NXT will be on a bigger platform as it airs on prime time television.

NXT TV will premiere on the USA Network on Wednesday, September 18th and will be expanded to a 2-hour live broadcast. 

Mojo Rawley has been chasing after the 24/7 title on RAW as of late. He cut a promo on the crowd from Arkansas Monday night on RAW. The segment wasn’t aired on the live broadcast but WWE posted it to their social media channels.

In the video, Rawley decides he doesn’t want to wrestle in Arkansas. He talked about how he earned an MBA when he was only 21 years old and then asked the crowd if they could even spell MBA.

The unaired segment can be viewed in its entirety in the-lay

Mojo Rawley On RAW

The 33-year-old former NFL Football player has been performing on WWE live events as of late. He’s also been used as part of the 24/7 title storylines on RAW and Smackdown.

Rawley recently re-signed with WWE as well.

• Mojo Rawley Signs New “Multi-Year” Contract With WWE

Rawley has yet to win a championship in WWE but he did win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal two years ago at WrestleMania 33. The highest ranking he has achieved on the PWI Top 500 rankings was in 2017 as well when he was ranked at 111.

• Mojo Rawley Confident We’ll See Rob Gronkowski In A WWE Ring

Mojo Rawley has reportedly signed a new contract with WWE.

According to Pro Wrestling Sheet, Rawley has signed a new deal with the promotion. There are no further details as of the time of writing. It has been noted the contract is a “multi-year deal” at the very least.

Rawley joins other mid-card Superstars Mike and Maria Kanellis, who also signed new long-term deals with WWE. The Kanellis’ new contract will see them stay with the company for another 5 years.

WWE are aggressively attempting to keep as many Superstars as possible away from potential competition from All Elite Wrestling. Long-term, big money deals appear to be the contributing factor as Superstar contracts come up for expiration.

Mojo signed with the company back in 2012. Originally a part of NXT, he would receive his main roster call up in 2016.

Despite not being utilized to any real degree since then, the Superstar has achieved some notable wins, winning the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal in 2017 during WrestleMania 33.

Although he has had opportunities at titles during his time in WWE, he has yet to secure that elusive championship gold.

Since leaving his ‘Hype’ persona behind, he now sports fractured facepaint and has adopted more heel manerisms.

Although 46 spots remain, we finally have a couple of participants announced for Friday’s WWE Super ShowDown special.

WWE has been advertising “a 50-Man Battle Royal — the largest in WWE history” since the beginning of their promotional push towards their return to the Saudi Arabian market for WWE Super ShowDown on June 7. When the final week leading up to the event began on Monday, there had yet to be a single entrant announced for the match.

In fact, other than the official WWE Super ShowDown mini site at WWE.com, the company hadn’t really acknowledged the match.

Four Superstars Entered Into WWE’s 50-Man Battle Royal

During a commercial break segment on Monday’s “go-home” show for Friday’s live special, Mojo Rawley declared that he would be entering the 50-Man Battle Royal in Saudi Arabia. WWE followed that up on Tuesday night in similar fashion as Elias revealed during an off-air segment on last night’s SmackDown Live that he too would be entering the match.

Additionally, Karl Anderson took to social media on Tuesday evening to announce that he and Luke Gallows will be making the trip to Jeddah this week to compete in the 50-Man Battle Royal.

Other Rumored Entrants For Super ShowDown Battle Royal

While WWE has yet to reveal a list of participants for the match, there have been rumors that NXT Superstars will be flown to Saudi Arabia to be included in the match, with Matt Riddle being one specific name that has been making the rounds.

A.J. Styles has also been rumored, as he has been included in the advertising for WWE Super ShowDown, but does not have a match yet with only two days remaining until the show. With “The Phenomenal One” recovering from an injury as of late, it would make since for WWE to have him work a match with limited physicality.

With the aforementioned entrants now announced for the 50-Man Battle Royal at WWE Super ShowDown, featured below is an updated look at the latest officially advertised lineup for this Friday’s live special:

WWE SUPER SHOW-DOWN 2019

WWE Universal Championship
* Seth Rollins (C) vs. Baron Corbin

WWE Title Match
* Kofi Kingston (C) vs. Dolph Ziggler

WWE Intercontinental Title Match
* “The Demon” Finn Balor (C) vs. Andrade

First Time Ever
* The Undertaker vs. Goldberg

* Triple H vs. Randy Orton

* Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon

* Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley

3-On-1 Handicap Match
* Lars Sullivan vs. Lucha House Party

50-Man Battle Royal
* Participants Include: Mojo Rawley, Elias, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows (46 other entrants to be determined)

WWE Super ShowDown takes place this Friday, June 7th at King Abdullah Sports City’s King Abdullah International Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Friday. The event will be streamed live via the WWE Network starting at 2pm E.T. / 11am P.T. Make sure to join us here at SEScoops.com this Friday afternoon for WWE Super ShowDown results coverage.

For detailed analysis and insight, as well as predictions for each match on the card from three veteran pro wrestling journalists, check out our exclusive WWE Super ShowDown Predictions.

On Sunday, former tight end of New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement from NFL.

WWE’s Mojo Rawley who is good friends with Gronkowsk said that we can expect to see the Gronk in a WWE ring at some point.

Speaking to TMZ Sports, Rawley said, “That wouldn’t shock me one bit. I mean, he’s always been a wrestling fan,” Rawley said. “… In the future, I’m sure at some point you’ll see him inside a WWE ring in one capacity or another, but I don’t know if that’s day gonna be today.”

On whether the company themselves would be interested in the former NFL star, Rawley responded positively and said that a personality like Gronkowski is exactly what the company looks for:

“I’m absolutely positive they would be pretty receptive to that,” he said. “A guy that can move the way he can, that has his size and overall demeanor and charisma, yeah, that’s kinda what we recruit around. That’s exactly what we’re looking for here.”

Rawley continued, “So you know, I’m sure they’d be on board with it, and like you said, there’s been a lot of Superstars from other walks of life that have come here and been successful. That’s kinda the beauty of WWE – everyone’s got their own story, they all have their own path of getting here. It’s just a very diverse and unique locker room. So yeah, he’d be a perfect fit. Absolutely.”

Gronkowski appeared at WrestleMania 33 to help his friend Rawley win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. Gronkowski was sitting ringside and Jinder Mahal threw a drink at him which prompted the star to get in the ring and attack Mahal.

If you felt that the Hype Bros. team were a bit…bland…then you’re not alone. Turns out that Mojo Rawley, who comprised half of the team with Zack Ryder, pretty much felt the same way.

Rawley spoke recently with Lilian Garcia for her podcast, Chasing Glory. During the course of the conversation, they covered a number of topics including his place in the WWE, how happy he is with his position, and his previous experiences with football and the NFL.

Despite admitting that he learned a lot from Zack Ryder, Mojo was quick to point out that the Hype Bros. was a project that neither man was emotionally invested in from the start.

“He [Zack Ryder] didn’t want to do it, I didn’t want to do it but we weren’t gonna say no… we’re not gonna turn down an opportunity,” Rawley explained. “We both looked at it. You don’t know when these [opportunities] are gonna come across. Here’s two guys that are literally polar opposites. He had the path that I didn’t have.”

“It Ruined My Identity”

The end of the Hype Bros. was less of a bang, more of a whimper for both superstars.
Rawley reflected on how they broke the team up, saying, “I think we reached the point that there was no more that could be done with that tag team. Even though we didn’t accomplish much, I don’t think there was much more to learn from one another.”

“We didn’t really like how the Hype Bros turned out to be,” Rawley added. “‘Stay Hype’ all of a sudden kind of became ‘oh, I’m always energetic, I’m always laughing, I’m always making jokes.’ It ruined my identity I felt like,” Rawley confessed.

“I don’t know how we got to that point,” he said. “When I noticed that it was going down that path, I felt like it was too late. It was something to this day that I hate. I hate that. [Zack Ryder] started to feel that way too with where this tag team was going. The day that team died, careerwise, was one of the best things that could have happened to us.”

https://soundcloud.com/user-708023247/mojo-rawley-from-nfl-football

Ronda Rousey & Bobby Lashley Get Scanned For Mattel

WWE posted the following video on their YouTube channel showcasing a few WWE Superstars, including Ronda Rousey and Bobby Lashley, getting 3D scans done for their Mattel action figures. Check out the video here:

Mojo Rawley Shows Off Nasty Bruise

Last night (Mon. July 23, 2018) on Monday Night RAW, Mojo Rawley defeated Tyler Breeze in singles competition. Rawley shared a nasty bruise on his leg after the match on Twitter, but said he isn’t worried about it because he’s “undeterred”:

“Undeterred. Gonna take more than just a little bruise to hold me down. I’m undefeated with this little bruise. 4 wins in a row with this little bruise. On to bigger & better things with this little bruise. I’m too focused to take a knee.”

Undeterred. Gonna take more than just a little bruise to hold me down. I’m undefeated with this little bruise. 4 wins in a row with this little bruise. On to bigger & better things with this little bruise. I’m too focused to take a knee. #MojoRising #KillerInstinct #NoFilter @WWE pic.twitter.com/dkeafzlJJO

— Dean “Mojo” Muhtadi (@MojoMuhtadi) July 24, 2018

WWE fans are absolutely crazy.

TMZ Sports has published a video of WWE Superstar Mojo Rawley hanging out in a bar, when a fan (wearing a duck hat) approaches the former Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner and asks him to slap his chest.

Rawley laughs at him a bit before the fan, who is most likely intoxicated, shoves Rawley playfully. This seems to pump Rawley up a bit, who then overhand slaps the fan right on the chest.

The fan didn’t seem to be in too much pain, instead flexing and screaming after the slap. Another fan approached Rawley asking for the same. This fan, however, only got Rawley to play with his chest before laughing and waving for the cameras.

Check out the video here:

If you’re drunk and approach a WWE wrestler to slap your chest, Rawley probably shouldn’t be at the top of your list. Before joining WWE’s developmental program in NXT back in 2012, Rawley played professional football as a defensive lineman in the NFL for both the Green Bay Packers and the Arizona Cardinals.

Six years into his training as a professional wrestler; Rawley is on the main roster as a member of SmackDown Live, a former Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner, and is currently chasing his first singles title of his career.

Discussion: What are your thoughts on Rawley’s professional wrestling career? How long until he finally gets his hands on a singles title?

Mojo Rawley Wants Another Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal Trophy

Mojo Rawley is gunning for another WrestleMania moment. At last year’s mega event, Rawley scored an upset win to capture the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal trophy. Rawley eliminated Jinder Mahal with some help from New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.

Back in those days, Rawley lived by the “Hype or Die” motto. These days, he takes a more serious approach. Of course, that is when he’s actually featured on an episode of SmackDown Live. Rawley took to Twitter to make it clear that he’s going for another trophy:

https://twitter.com/MojoRawleyWWE/status/976260355709132802

WWE’s Top 10 SmackDown Live Moments (March 20)

Last night’s episode of SmackDown Live was supposed to be a celebration. The brand’s general manager Daniel Bryan had finally been cleared to wrestle earlier that day. After years of sitting on the sidelines, Bryan said he didn’t know when he’d wrestle again but that he is officially active once again.

Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn crashed the party in the most sadistic way. Bryan fired Owens and Zayn for their attack on commissioner Shane McMahon last week. Owens and Zayn responded by ambushing Bryan. The assault was capped off when Owens powerbombed Bryan on the ring apron.

You can see that segment and more in this week’s top 10 SmackDown Live moments below:

– As we’ve noted, Asuka chose to challenge Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 34 for the SmackDown Live Women’s Title. The 2018 Women’s Royal Rumble winner had her choice between Flair or RAW Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss. Despite currently being a Superstar on RAW, “The Empress Of Tomorrow” decided to challenge SmackDown Live’s top woman instead. Bliss took to Twitter to react to Asuka’s decision:

I knew that @WWEAsuka was a smart girl. Hope you had fun at #WWEFastlane, Empress!

— Lexi (Kaufman) Cabrera (@AlexaBliss_WWE) March 12, 2018

– On the Fastlane pre-show last night Breezango teamed up with Tye Dillinger to defeat Mojo Rawley, Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin in a Six-Man Tag Team match. During the match Rawley was receiving “You can’t wrestle” chants from the crowd. He took to Twitter to react after the show:

https://twitter.com/MojoRawleyWWE/status/972988482321879040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The next big athlete from another sport to transition to sports entertainment might be Rob Gronkowski. The 28-year-old New England Patriot is a 5x Pro Bowl selection, 2x Super Bowl champion, and 5x 1st Team All-Pro in the NFL. He’s also a huge wrestling fan and helped his friend, Mojo Rawley, win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at last year’s WrestleMania.

According to an interview he gave to TMZ Sports, Mojo Rawley believes the NFL Superstar will end up in WWE at some point.

Rob Gronkowski to WWE

“It’s not a matter of if it’s a matter of when baby!” – Mojo Rawley on Rob Gronkowski going to WWE.

Not hurting Gronkowski’s chances of being granted a WWE career in his post-NFL life, is that Stephanie McMahon and Triple H are both big Patriots fans.