Evans Reportedly Moving to Raw, Turning Heel

[Liz]

WWE is reportedly taking an unexpected route with the return of Lacey Evans to WWE programming.

According to PWInsider (h/t Middleton), WWE's current plan calls for Evans to be a heel on the Raw brand moving forward.

Evans has been out of action for well over a year after giving birth to her second child, but in recent weeks, WWE began airing vignettes for Evans on SmackDown.

In the series of vignettes, Evans seemingly spoke from the heart about her difficult upbringing, including stories about her father's issues with addiction and the volatility she encountered during her childhood.

Ultimately, Evans was able to pull herself out of that situation by joining the Marines and later becoming a WWE Superstar.

All signs pointed toward Evans being presented as a big-time babyface, which would have been a huge departure from the heel persona she has had for most of her WWE career.

Instead, a strange announcement was made on last week's SmackDown with ring announcer Samantha Irvin asking fans to show Evans "proper respect" when she made her entrance.

That type of language is normally reserved for heels, which may have been the first sign WWE was going in a different direction.

In terms of the switch from SmackDown to Raw, WWE essentially aired highlights of Evans' vignettes on Monday's Raw, which suggested she was perhaps getting shifted to the red brand.

It is unclear why WWE decided to make that change and why it chose misdirection in terms of keeping her a heel, but all signs seem to point toward WWE taking that route with Evans.