Opening up SmackDown with one of his signature promos, Paul Heyman walked down to the ring to let the WWE Universe know that while Cody Rhodes is a viable challenger for the “Head of the Table,” Sami Zayn is not.

Disagreeing with Rhodes' comments that WWE's titles aren't personal, suggesting instead that the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship is the very reason why The Bloodline is relevant in the first place, Heyman informed the audience at the Mohegan Sun Arena that Zayn wasn't scheduled to appear at the penultimate SmackDown before the Elimination Chamber – a declaration that was almost immediately proven wrong by the appearance of the  “Underdog from the Underground” who received an incredible reaction from the crowd as he so often does.

Discussing his own prospects at the Elimination Chamber in his hometown of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Zayn informed Heyman that his man may not be on top for much longer, and he'd be wise to start thinking about the future.

“You know what every other member of The Bloodline knows,” Zayn said. “Roman Reigns’ days as Universal Champion are numbered. Roman Reigns is off the rails, and now the walls are closing in, and everything is crumbling. Look what happened, I left The Bloodline, me. Jey Uso walked out on his own, that was his decision. What do you think happens next? What do you think Jimmy Uso does next? Do you think Jimmy Uso sides with his abusive cousin, or will he sign with his twin brother who he shared the womb with? What do you think happens next?”

Further using his opportunity to point out that not only is Reigns a bully, but that even Heyman is hedging his bets ahead of “The Head of the Table's” eventual loss, Zayn made sure the crowd knows that he'll do everything in his power to secure the win and become the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion for the first time in his career. Will Zayn make good on his promise, or will he Reigns do what Reigns does and keep his championship reign alive heading into a match with Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39? Needless to say, WWE needs to book this one right; otherwise, it could have a negative effect on Rhodes moving forward.

Mick Foley hopes Sami Zayn's booking doesn't negatively affect Cody Rhodes.

Discussing the Sami Zayn storyline ahead of the Elimination Chamber on his podcast, the WWE legend suggested that if Paul “Triple H” Levesque doesn't book Zayn's forthcoming storyline correctly, the fans could take it out on Rhodes.

“This is where the storytelling — the storytelling has been so strong,” Foley said via Fightful. “WWE has to be really careful in how they treat what they have in Sami Zayn. So if it's a one-off, I think fans will be upset and subconsciously take that out on Cody. So I think it's really important that Sami be treated reverently by the people in charge. Because, you know, we call him ‘The gift that keeps on giving.' We want him to just keep on giving. You don't want this title shot to be the peak of his storyline and then soon forgotten.”

Is Foley correct? Could WWE end up turning Rhodes and Zayn into the modern-day Daniel Bryan and Batista? Unfortunately, that is very much a possibility, as the organic popularity of Zayn may put egg on the face of unlikely company man Rhodes, who is already doing the media round like he's currently champion.