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Double or Nothing has come and gone and with it we had some big shakeups in the rankings. This past PPV had big time faction battles that heavily affected where teams placed on this list. Before we get to it, here's how we're evaluating groups.
Strength: The combined win % of team members. The numbers were taken from a combination of the AEW roster page and my own win/loss tracking (for talent not signed with AEW). Involvement in a mulit-person match carries large risk/reward. For instance, if the Wingmen (Drake, Nemeth, Avalon) lose a trios match that counts as -3 in the overall faction W/L as each member has that loss added to their record. If Avalon losses a singles match that only counts as a -1 to the Wingmen, and while not ideal it's not as big a black mark as a team loss.
Cohesion: Ability of a group to work together. If they can avoid tripping over each other or hitting each other with moves they will score higher. Points will be lost if cracks are starting to form such as a heel turn for a member being foreshadowed. This category is fairly subjective.
Purpose: Even if not expressly stated, most groups have some form of a "mission statement". This could range from winning championships to simply the love of violence.
Attainment: The ability to win championships. Currently there are championships from AEW, ROH, and AAA in play although titles from Impact and NJPW have also been featured in the past. I will only count belts that have been featured on camera on AEW programing (sorry PWG World Champ Daniel Garcia!).
Groups That Might as Well Disband
The Pinnacle - For all intents and purposes this group is over and done with. The glory days have long passed where once this crew was at the summit but now find themselves so far down the hill that they no longer even see the top. No cohesion to speak of, a sub-par win %, and a questionable future for MJF in regards to his role within AEW. FTR is right to hitch their wagon to a winner like CM Punk.
Groups to Watch
Death Triangle - While Death Triangle is finally back to 100% as a group, they couldn't get the win at Double or Nothing. Despite the boost of baby-Penta, they were undone by the fully evil Julia Hart. Things could turn around as any combination of the three members would make for instantly credible challengers to any of AEW's titles.
Blackpool Combat Club - BCC would undoubtedly rank higher if it weren't for that high profile loss to the Jericho Appreciation Society at Double or Nothing. Despite having high cohesion within their own group, they couldn't co-exist with Eddie Kingston and his attempted murder of Chris Jericho via immolation.
Honorable Mention
House of Black -
Strength- High: 82% With the addition of Julia Hart the House of Black dropped their win % slightly, but it's still over 80% so that counts as high in my metrics.
Cohesion- High: Still a focused group even if Matthews looks odd not having tattoos like the others.
Purpose- High: Loving darkness and all that comes with it!
Attainment- NI: Still lacking in the gold department.
Jericho Appreciation Society -
Strength- Mid: 72%
Cohesion- High: During Anarchy in the Arena it was the lack of cohesion within Blackpool that really turned the match in JAS's favor. Jericho's the leader and everyone else is cool with that.
Purpose- High: Successfully fueling another re-invention of Chris Jericho.
Attainment- NI: No championships though.
#5 Undisputed Elite
Strength- Mid: 74% Kyle O'Reilly got the surprise win over Darby while the Bucks got a surprising loss against the shells of the Hardys. There's been a fair amount of start/stop momentum with this group.
Cohesion- High: They seem to all be on the same page. No obvious inner conflict.
Purpose- Mid: I'm still not quite clear what this group's goal is, if any. They're having fun at least.
Attainment- Mid: While the Owen cup tournament belt wont be regularly defended, the achievement does give Adam Cole and his Elite buddies a slight boost in this category.
Adam Cole - Lead Singer
Bobby Fish - Jazz Flute
Kyle O'Reilly - Drums
Nick Jackson - Bass Guitar
Matt Jackson - Tambourine
#4 Jurassic Express
Strength-Mid: 68% More losses like the multi-man on Dynamite and they risking falling into the NI category (sub 60%). Christian Cage continues to be the weak link of the group in regards to getting wins in 2022, although Jungle Boy has eaten lots of pins in multi-man matches.
Cohesion- Mid: There's a trouble a brewing in the Jurassic Express and Cage is the barista.
Purpose- High: Friendship! The story of a boy and his dinosaur pal is far from over.
Attainment- High: Still tag champs after a PPV show where they were not favored in their defense.
Christian Cage - The Father (Figure)
Jungle Boy - The Son
Luchasaurus - The Holy Dino
#3 America's Top Team
Strength- High: 82% Despite participating in one of the most frowned upon angles in recent AEW history, the team has been getting wins. Scorpio Sky being the largest contributor to the W column.
Cohesion- Mid: Sky's rapid heel/face/heel turns confused not only the audience, but Ethan Page as well. There will always be an element of doubt in regards to loyalty, especially if Kazarian is involved.
Purpose- High: Win matches. They've been making a habit of it.
Attainment- High: The TNT title has lost some prestige but it's got a slick new color scheme! That's gotta count for something.
Dan Lambert - King Cobra
Scorpio Sky - Black Mamba
Ethan Page - Bullsnake
Paige van Zant - Cottonmouth
#2 Team Taz
Strength- High: 83% Any match Team Taz is in they can conceivably win. This number could be higher if HOOK would team with other TT members and not Danhausen. It remains to be seen if this becomes an issue down the road.
Cohesion- High: Unchanged from last month.
Purpose- High: Continuing to build assassins.
Attainment- Mid: Were they able to win the Tag belts, this would have shot up into the "high" category. As it currently is, the FTW belt will never be more than "mid" (no one tell Taz!).
Taz - Pope of Chili-Town
Ricky Starks - Guy Incognito
Powerhouse Hobbs - Max Power
HOOK - Armin Tamzarian
#1 The Baddies
Strength- High: 85% Now this is mostly due to Jade's all win record, but Red Velvet has an impressive 13-3 record for the year, while Hogan has a solid 5-2 record (AEW should just go ahead and make Hogan all-Elite. Might as well give her an official roster spot).
Cohesion- High: The group is as tight as their coordinated entrance would have you believe.
Purpose- High: Make money and look good doing it. Now that they have a strong mouthpiece in Stokely Hathaway the group's intentions will only be clearer.
Attainment- High: Jade Cargill is simply the most dominant champion that AEW has right now. Undefeated before she won the TBS Championship, and undefeated in her reign. It doesn't get much more prestigious than that.
Jade Cargill - The Money
Keira Hogan - The Bling
Red Velvet - Le-Chic
So that's where we currently stand. This series is going to take a month off as I don't foresee the build to Forbidden Door focusing on the AEW factions too heavily. I'll be back sometime in August for the next installment. Who will rise in the rankings and who will find themselves pursuing a solo career by then?