Matt Cardona Recalls TV Series That Inspired WWE's Edgeheads Team
Before he was "The Indy God," or "Long Island Iced Z," or any of his other monikers, Matt Cardona (originally known as Zack Ryder) was an "Edgehead." Paired with Brian Myers (then Curt Hawkins), Cardona was a stand-in, punching bag, and all-around lackey for Adam Copeland, known as Edge at the time.
Cardona revealed in an interview with Jeff Jarrett on "My World," that he and Myers drew inspiration from a popular HBO program for the idea.
"Being one of the Edgeheads ... it was our pitch," said the former WWE star. "At the time there was this show on TV called 'Entourage' and we thought that Edge could be the [main character] Vinnie Chase and we could be his entourage."
The idea then spiraled into Cardona and Myers dressing like Copeland so that they could hide under the ring and distract Copeland's opponents. The two were brought to WWE during a time when Copeland was injured, meaning the former AEW TNT Champion had no idea who the two men were.
"At the time, we had just been called up to the main roster," Cardona remembered. "He didn't need [us] but he was smart enough to realize 'I can use these guys to take all my bumps. It can add so much to my character. It's a way to steal the title instead of winning it.'"
According to Cardona, he and Myers found out the pitch was approved in the bathroom of the Kowloon in Saugus, MA, which also played host to an AEW segment between MJF and Adam Cole last year.