In AEW, there's MJF, and then there's everybody else.

Sure, the promotion has other stars, some of whom are very popular inside the ring – Kenny Omega, Christian Cage, Darby Allin – and some who are popular outside of it – Ric Flair, Adam Copeland, Saraya – but when you look at the premier storylines in the promotion right now, from the “Best Bout Machine” to Wardlow, Samoa Joe, Bullet Club Gold, and even the World Trios Champions, The Acclaimed, the connective tissue bringing them all together is the “People's Scumbag,” as there's just no performer on the level of “The Devil.”

This charisma, when mixed with his status as the true jewel of the AEW roster, is why former WWE personality Jonathan Coachman believes MJF has set himself up for an incredibly interesting free agency period in 2024.

“There are very few people that in the history of the business that have figured it out. When I watched this kid a few years ago, and he was just young and didn't even have a home for wrestling, I'm watching this arrogance, and I'm like, ‘Boy, how would that play in the WWE locker room?' Not only did he not stop, he kept doubling down, and what did he have that everybody else doesn't have? He can talk better than anybody else. He knows. What did we just say, if you know it's great, they can't say anything. When he does little things — the other day I saw a video where he's reading the names, and he said Edge, and Tony Khan was like [no] because you can't use the same name, he does that on purpose. That's what I'm saying, he's playing chess. He knew he was supposed to say Adam Copeland, but he knew that if he said that, then Tony's going to be off camera, and there's literally nothing Tony can do.”

While MJF might just be the biggest success story of AEW, as it wasn't too long ago he was threatening to leave the promotion and telling Tony Khan to go you-know-what himself for his contractual status, there's no way he would really leave the promotion, as pretty much everything is specifically tailored around him at this point, right? Well, if TK wants to keep him around, Coach believes he'll need to pay up, as he believes fans may soon be looking at the highest-paid wrestlers in professional wrestling history in terms of downside guarantee.

MJF may have worked himself into a multi-million-dollar man.

Discussing how contracts worked back in the day, where performers like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and John Cena would earn salaries between $5-$10 million, Jonathan Coachman explained that, in his opinion, MJF has the potential to work himself into that same conversation if he plays free agency correctly, as he has the guts to go all-in on building up a true bidding war.

“I believe this to be true, Stone Cold Steve Austin made the most money for Vince over the years. But when you're talking about salary, how much guys make, Stone Cold and Rock probably topped out between five and ten million dollars a year. They were the ones that really got that downside guarantee as high as it's ever been, Cena was up there too. I think MJF, when he becomes a free agent, because how many guys have the guts? Think about this, how many guys have the guts, a year or two before your contract is up, to say publicly [to not] even think about coming to me with some weak offer before my deal is up because I don't care what's on that piece of paper, I'm going to be a free agent. Think about how many guys in the business today have the guts to say that, and then nobody crushes them. I haven't heard anybody say, woah, he's putting his career in jeopardy. I think he's going to be the highest-paid superstar in the history of the business when he becomes a free agent,” Coachman said.

“When you have a guy like him, who's right now arguably the number one superstar in the world, you could argue that. Obviously everybody will go look at the run that Roman Reigns has had, of course. I'm saying, if you were to have a draft today, who would be your number one pick? Throw them all into the hat.”

Would AEW have booked a show on Long Island called Worlds End if MJF was going to leave for WWE, effectively giving The Fed the biggest promotional campaign for their newest Superstar while his name was still hot in the headlines? Maybe yes, maybe no, but hey, regardless of how things shake out, it sure seems like MJF is about to make some serious cash, regardless of which name is written on the check.