During AEW Dynamite’s Wednesday edition, Orange Cassidy found himself the subject of criticism from WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray. Cassidy withstood a piledriver on the steel steps, a spot which Ray critiqued on the most recent episode of the “Busted Open After Dark” podcast.
Ray proffered that Cassidy’s refusal to “sell” the spot, in his view, made the wrestler appear exceedingly powerful. Ray asserted,
“It’s a piledriver on steel steps. Seriously. Orange Cassidy should have been stretchered out, neck in a brace, not standing and certainly not defending himself. Even the most fanatical AEW fans tuning into this evening are aware in their hearts ‘Uncle Bully has a point.’ The question is whether they wish to accept this truth.”
Identifying past instances where wrestlers had failed to “sell” piledrivers, Ray pointed out the example of Road Warrior Hawk. However, he emphasized,
“That was Road Warrior Hawk and his situation involved a ring-based piledriver, not one performed on steel steps, and it was immediately followed by another move targeting the neck region. Forgive me, folks, but this is where AEW needs guidance. The act of taking a piledriver on steel steps, followed by another move, and dismissing its gravity, it’s just throwing away the act itself. What exactly are we expected to do to Orange Cassidy to defeat him or sideline him? He just endured a piledriver on steel steps.”