WWE Has Not ‘Completely Shut the Door’ on Daniel Bryan?

Source: Bleacher Report

Daniel Bryan formally retired from in-ring competition in February, but WWE fans may not have seen the last of the four-time world champion between the ropes.

WWE Yet to ‘Completely Shut the Door’ on Bryan’s Return to Wrestling

Forbes‘ Anthony DiMoro reported Thursday that WWE is leaving open the possibility Bryan can return:

As of now, WWE is planning to continue the angle of wrestlers calling out Bryan for his retirement and taunting Bryan for not being able to wrestle. WWE knows it’s a hot button topic with fans and will continue to tease a Bryan return. While, at this time, it still remains unlikely that Bryan returns to the ring in the future, WWE has “not completely shut the door on a Daniel Bryan return to the ring”.

Even when he had his farewell on Raw, Bryan’s health situation was somewhat murky.

Dave Meltzer (h/t Wrestling Inc.’s Raj Giri) reported on Wrestling Observer Radio in January that doctors from UCLA gave Bryan the green light to wrestle again. Meltzer added, however, WWE‘s medical team had yet to sign off on Bryan resuming his in-ring career.

During his address to WWE fans on Feb. 8, Bryan discussed what the doctors had told him:

Speculation reached a fever pitch Tuesday night after Talking Smack on the WWE Network when Bryan called The Miz a “coward” for his wrestling style. The Miz responded that Bryan was the coward since he hasn’t stepped back in a ring, be it in WWE or another promotion:

The Miz calling out Bryan like that seemed out of the blue.

The two have had issues, going back to when The Miz was Bryan’s pro mentor on the first season of NXT. And WWE has used retired wrestlers in numerous storylines in the past in order to give a current Superstar more momentum.

With that said, the personal nature of The Miz‘s attack went beyond what is typically seen in WWE programming, especially since Bryan can’t get retribution in the form of a win at a major pay-per-view.

No one would be surprised if Bryan stayed retired following The Miz‘s promo, but it would be a disappointment if their feud didn’t move into the squared circle.