Dave Meltzer has weighed in on the reported departure of Sheamus from WWE, offering his thoughts on why the company may have been unwilling to match the veteran’s previous contract.
As previously relayed, Sheamus is anticipated to leave WWE after his deal expires, having per sources declined a restructured contract offer. His profile was also moved to the WWE Alumni section on WWE.com on Sunday evening.
Speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer floated the idea of the decision reflects TKO’s broader philosophy when it comes to veteran talent. “I mean, if you look at the TKO [WWE’s parent company] situation, from talking to people there and in other situations — they are very willing to pay really, really giant money to people they perceive as stars, like a sports team, you know what I mean?”
On the other hand, Meltzer is confident that the company’s approach changes when it comes to aging performers with lucrative contracts. “But when it’s older wrestlers who they perceive as being on their downside and have large contracts, they’re very much like an NFL team. Rather than pay a guy a giant salary who’s on the downside, they’d rather spend their resources on somebody younger — who they can additionally pay less.”
Owing to that philosophy, Meltzer said he was not surprised by WWE’s relayed offer to Sheamus. “So, the offer to Sheamus really doesn’t surprise me at all. He’s a guy I would have likely something like this to happen to.”
As of this writing, neither Sheamus nor WWE has publicly commented on the reports regarding his departure.