Backstage Talk Is That Malcolm Bivens Has Eyes On Joining AEW

According to a recent report, one of the recently-departing NXT stars may already know what the next few months will hold. As per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, it sounds as though Malcolm Bivens might be headed for AEW.

Bivens was offered a contract to stay with NXT but he declined. It wasn't clear why at the time, but The Wrestling Observer Newsletter's reports now claim that many behind the scenes in NXT believe Bivens’ decision to leave WWE was due to having eyes on a move to AEW. They note, "In NXT, the belief was that Bivens didn't sign because he wanted to go to AEW and will be there when his non-compete ends." They add, "Whether that's true or not, that was the belief."

Bivens was a key piece to a few different storylines and characters in NXT. He was arguably the most prominent manager on the brand and a good mouthpiece for up-and-coming talent who were needing more seasoning with their promos. At the same time, many of the angles he was working on would have been changed as talents in NXT were released. It could be that Bivens saw the writing on the wall, felt there was nowhere else to go with his character, or simply wanted to make a change.

AEW and Tony Khan have not publicly spoken about the NXT releases, including Bivens and there have been no teases of any of the released stars making a jump. Should they, it wouldn't be long before they could technically make their debut. Most NXT stars work under a 30-day non-compete and those releases happened at the end of April.

Related: Malcolm Bivens Confirms He Rejected A WWE Contract Offer

What Role Would Bivens Play In AEW?

If AEW was interested, would they bring him in as an on-air personality? He doesn't exactly fit the mold of most of the managers they have on the roster as he's not a former wrestling legend. Could he be brought in to help behind the scenes? It was said Bivens worked hard off-camera as well and had some responsibilities behind the scenes.

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