Sup Scott,
I watched Table for 3 lastnight with the "Intercontinental Club", Daniel Bryan, Ziggler & Ryback on the WWE Network. Daniel mentioned that when he won the title at Mania, he did not want to be on RAW with it because he knew it would take a backseat to Cena’s US Title. He said he wanted it to be exclusively on Smackdown so it would feel important and meaningful. Could that formula work? I’m sure it can’t get any worse.
That’s like the mantra of modern WWE. "Well, I’m sure it couldn’t be any worse!"
But yes, the idea of Cena defending the US title on RAW and Bryan defending the IC title on Smackdown, with everyone going after Seth Rollins at PPVs and major shows, is called "What wrestling companies used to do successfully for 50 years before Vince changed it." Doesn’t even have to be a brand split, just keep one guy and one title as something special for people to get when they tune into each show. It’s a wacky concept, I know.