Cody Rhodes‘ WWE journey tagline is ‘going from undesirable to undeniable’. His first run in the Stamford-based company was not as remarkable as the one that he is currently having. Rhodes left WWE behind, went on an indie run, and eventually landed in AEW. This is where he was offered the position of one of the EVPs in the company.

Tony Khan’s contract did not allure The American Nightmare as he eventually joined WWE again and has been having a great run here. However, a former WWE star believes that it wasn’t just a ‘talent signing’ but also a power move.

Cody Rhodes’ signing was a way to entice other AEW stars

Wrestlers jumping ships between WWE and AEW is nothing new and has been going on for the past few years. Cody Rhodes was one of the first stars to come back to his former workplace despite holding a management position in Tony Khan’s company. He received a major babyface storyline this time around, but his talent wasn’t the only thing that WWE found attractive at the time.

During his podcast, Ryback opined, “Cody being that EVP over there, they knew and they have the ability to look long term that having one of a powerful person from AEW on their roster doing well, with that, that they would be able to get future talents easier. That was not. Cody was not strictly just a talent signing.”

The ex-AEW superstar may have been signed because the leading wrestling promotion believed that his presence on the active WWE roster would encourage other AEW stars to make them jump and join him if he ended up having a lucrative run in the company.

There have been several signings from AEW since and Cody Rhodes even took a shot at Tony Khan in a promo with some of those stars.

Cody Rhodes and other ex-AEW stars ganged up on Tony Khan

The part-Cuban wrestler is now one of the top stars in the promotion, reigning as the WWE Undisputed Universal Championship. His other friends from AEW who joined WWE’s developmental brand also appear to be doing well in terms of their wrestling run here. All former AEW stars, including Ethan Page, Shawn Spears, and Lexis King, were present on the NXT episode on 06/11/24.

This reunion was something neither of the four stars probably would forget for a long time. Rhodes was wishing one of his former co-stars all the best when the other two arrived at the scene, demanding the same wish to proceed into the trials to win against the NXT Champion. This is when Cody Rhodes took a subtle shot at Tony Khan, implying with his words that they were in a much better place now than they were back in AEW.

What are your thoughts on Ryback’s statement about WWE’s strategy involving Cody Rhodes? Let us know in the comments below.