Seth Rollins has conceded that he sometimes feels like he’s playing “second fiddle” in WWE to his former Shield partner, Roman Reigns.
Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins burst onto the WWE scene together along with Dean Ambrose as The Shield at the 2012 Survivor Series. Rollins and Reigns soon became WWE Tag Team Champions together but further greatness awaited in WWE for all three of those men over the next decade.
Speaking to Ariel Helwani for BT Sports, Seth Rollins discussed his place in WWE compared to that of the all-conquering Roman Reigns who has held the Universal Title for over two years. Rollins reflected on beating Reigns to the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 31 but says even then he felt like a placeholder for The Tribal Chief:
“Even when I won the title at WrestleMania, cashed-in, great moment, I still felt like I was second fiddle to Roman. I still felt like he was the guy. You’re just the placeholder until he’s totally ready and we’re totally ready to put the ball in his hands.”
“But for now, you’re a step ahead, so we’re going to give you this and then we’ll move on to what we really want to be, but it’s going to take a few months. I’ve never, ever felt in my time in WWE that the company was like, ‘Yep, he’s our guy, put his face on everything.'”
Seth Rollins then admitted that he may just be unlucky to live in the Roman Reigns era and will have to accept being the top second-place star in WWE:
“I often wonder if it is because I live in the Roman era that it’s just never going to happen. The only time I was even considered for the main event of WrestleMania was when Roman got Leukemia. He was out from August till January or February and I was second behind in the little babyface column there and so, I got slotted in. I feel like it’s one of those things.”
“The best I can hope for is to be the Edge to his Cena or the Savage to his Hogan. Sometimes I just feel like that’s just the way the cookie crumbles. Doesn’t mean I don’t think that I’m better than he is or that I can perform or that I can draw at that level. I certainly think all those things but it’s not my sandbox. I don’t make those decisions.”