The Incredible (And Sometimes Overlooked) Legacy of The New Day

Let's face it, from a creative standpoint, WWE has gone through their share of struggles over the past ten years or so. Despite the fact that their roster has been loaded with incredibly talented men and women, WWE has often fumbled with their creative ideas for television. Questionable booking decisions, popular Superstars seemingly having their talent go to waste, unsatisfying storylines, finishes to matches that left fans puzzled, these are some of the reasons why wrestling fans have become frustrated with WWE's product over the last decade.

However, since 2014, there has been at least one good thing that has remained consistent, and that has been the entertainment provided to us by Kofi Kingston, Big E and Xavier Woods, collectively known as The New Day. Most fans are already very much aware of the individual histories of the three New Day members. By the time that The New Day formed in 2014, Kofi Kingston was already a multiple-time titleholder in WWE, having held the Intercontinental, United States and Tag Team Championships on multiple occasions. Big E was a former NXT Champion, and also held the Intercontinental Championship at one point. Xavier Woods was known to some fans for his time in TNA Wrestling as Consequences Creed prior to signing with WWE. He signed with WWE in 2010 and made his debut on the main roster in late 2013.

When The New Day formed in 2014, who would have ever thought that they would go on to accomplish as much as they have? Most tag teams or stables in WWE don't last for more than a year or two. The New Day have gone strong for seven years now, though they were somewhat separated over the past year due to Kingston and Woods being drafted to the Monday Night Raw roster while Big E was drafted to the Friday Night SmackDown roster during the 2020 WWE Draft (but as we all know, WWE doesn't always keep things very strict with the draft, and sometimes Superstars will appear on both programs, regardless of which brand they're supposed to be assigned to).

Over the past seven years, The New Day have become the most decorated team in WWE history, as they are currently recognized as being eleven-time WWE Tag Team Champions. Although they are known for their colorful outfits and humorous promos, the greatest thing about The New Day is the fact that when the bell rings, all three members of the group are excellent in-ring performers. When The New Day is featured on the card, especially in a championship bout, the fans know that they are probably going to get an entertaining match, filled with athleticism and good storytelling.

When you think of great tag team matches in WWE history, sure, many people will be quick to bring up the legendary Tables, Ladders and Chairs Matches between The Hardy Boyz, The Dudley Boyz and Edge & Christian during the Attitude Era. But if you're talking about great tag team wrestling in WWE's modern era, it is impossible to ignore the contributions of The New Day, as well as Jimmy & Jey Uso, The Bar (Sheamus & Cesaro), Luke Harper (R.I.P.) & Erick Rowan, The Revival/FTR (Scott Dawson/Dax Harwood & Dash Wilder/Cash Wheeler), The Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) and other great tag teams that have emerged in recent years.

How many pay-per-view events since 2014 have featured an incredible Tag Team Match involving The New Day? It never made a difference if it was during the pre-show or if it was on the main card of the PPV, The New Day's matches have always been one of the biggest highlights of the show. For that reason alone, Kingston, Woods and Big E can be considered three of the best pure workhorses that WWE has on their entire roster. Whether it's Raw, SmackDown, a pay-per-view event or a pre-show for the pay-per-view, The New Day has always, ALWAYS, delivered a great performance for the fans.

Kofi Kingston's WWE Championship victory at WrestleMania 35 was a magical moment for the WWE fans. He had a good run as champion, defeating the likes of Daniel Bryan, Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler, Samoa Joe and "The Viper" Randy Orton during his championship reign. As fans surely remember, WWE made the decision to have Kingston drop the WWE Title to Brock Lesnar on the October 4, 2019 edition of Friday Night SmackDown, which was the first episode of SmackDown to air on FOX. In a move that many fans considered to be a very poor booking decision, WWE had Brock Lesnar defeat Kofi Kingston for the title in less than ten seconds with a sudden F5 and a pinfall for the three-count.

Despite Kofi's quick loss to Brock Lesnar, The New Day has still been prominently featured on WWE programming, and they are still incredibly popular with the WWE audience.

On the September 13, 2021 edition of Monday Night Raw, Big E cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on Bobby Lashley, who had a very respectable and dominant reign as WWE Champion. Big E would defeat Lashley for the WWE Championship, which was an emotional moment for the WWE fans, as well as many people within the wrestling industry. Much like Kofi Kingston in 2019, Big E's WWE Championship win was extremely satisfying to watch because it felt like we were seeing somebody get a reward for all of their years of hard work.

And also, just like Kofi Kingston's championship victory, Big E's title victory further cemented the legacy of The New Day as a whole. The New Day is a group of three men who love the wrestling business, love to entertain the fans, and are extremely good at what they do. In an era of WWE's existence where fan satisfaction has been at an all-time low, The New Day has been one of the good things that WWE has had to offer on a regular basis for the past seven years. They are always entertaining, they always work hard in the ring, they always manage to stay fresh with their characters, and they have a strong connection with the WWE fanbase.

Years from now, people will look back at this period of time in WWE history, and although there has been a lot of lackluster programming, The New Day have always been great. In fact, they've been more than great, they've been spectacular. Their contributions to WWE over the past seven years must not be overlooked. They've worked too hard to not get the credit and the recognition that they deserve. Sure, they're not the only ones who have carried the company in recent years, but they have definitely created a unique legacy for themselves, and their legacy should really start to be appreciated. At this point, The New Day are not just "WWE Superstars." The New Day are WWE Legends.