AEW needs a high-end babyface to feud with Powerhouse Hobbs, and Samoa Joe provides a perfect match. It's clear that Tony Khan sees something in the self-proclaimed Monstar with good reason. The company doesn't have a lot of wrestlers who fit into the heelish brute role. There's Brody King and Jake Hager, but for a promotion so flush in faces who get over by working from underneath, AEW doesn't have enough monstrous bad guys.
The roster is packed with performers like Darby Allin, Orange Cassidy HOOK, and Adam Cole, who would be at their best while working with more physically prominent wrestlers. Guys who can throw them around like they're nothing, generating sympathy for them and making them look tough in the process. AEW doesn't have enough believable big, bad guys to make these kinds of wrestlers look good over longer, more drawn-out feuds. Allin and King is an example of a match made in wrestling heaven in terms of this dynamic. That's why a feud between Hobbs and Joe would make so much sense. The latter is about as imposing as they come and could help Powerhouse learn some of those tricks of the trade.
Hobbs is essential to AEW's long-term future. He brings to the table numerous traits that no one else in All Elite Wrestling can. Powerhouse plays the arrogant big man perfectly. His reason for feuding with Ricky Starks was outstanding. It wasn't because of anything besides feeling like his former tag-team partner was a loser. Given Ricky's track record of late, it's tough to argue with that, either. Hobbs needs something to do now, though, and a feud with Samoa Joe is the ticket.
Samoa Joe Feud Would Give Massive Boost To Powerhouse Hobbs
Some fans had an issue with Hobbs squashing Starks at All Out, but the booking made a ton of sense. Powerhouse needs to look like an absolute problem over the next few months. He should be protected in a way similar to Wardlow. No one should be able to get much offense in on him, and his spinebusters need to be treated like the end-all, be-all of matches. No one else in AEW should be doing them, either. This makes Hobbs look like a million bucks and gives up-and-coming acts like Daniel Garcia and Sammy Guevara the right kind of giant to slay.
Hobbs isn't quite there yet. His promos need work, but overall, his presence is unlike anything anyone else in AEW can offer. Even if his words fall short of the mark, his intensity does not. Don't overlook that Khan gave Powerhouse an essential aspect of Cody Rhodes' entrance with his interaction with the bars. If AEW didn't have more than a dozen titles floating around, Hobbs would be perfect for the company's version of the United States Championship within the next few months. He already broke out of the tag-team title scene. If AEW wants to make him something special, putting him with a legit veteran like Joe would be a fantastic way to go. Hobbs wouldn't have to do too much heavy lifting on the mic, while Joe could show Powerhouse how to be a Godzilla-esque feature on AEW television for the next decade.