You had to know that when TNA signed Tennessee Titans defensive back Adam "Pacman" Jones, some roster cuts were going to follow in order to clear salary space to pay Jones. Earlier this week, 5 wrestlers were let go:

Matt Bentley was last working under the name Martyr as a member of the jobber tag team Serotonin. The nephew of Shawn Michaels, Bentley will almost surely get a call from WWE in due course, and likely land on Smackdown, where they need some fresh faces in the fading cruiserweight division.

Doug Basham and Danny "Damaja" Hollie (nee Danny Basham) didn't last long and really weren't working under a full contract. I'll go out on a limb here and say they'll revive the Basham Brothers gimmick once they re-up with WWE and report to their old stomping grounds in OVW. And you know they will.

Jerry Lynn, after a push that nearly netted him the X Divison title, asked for and got his release. Brother Runt, aka Spike Dudley, hasn't been seen lately, while 1/2-brothers Ray & Devon have turned heel, perhaps poised for another run with the TNA tag titles. However, Team 3D reportedly doesn't plan on sticking around too much longer and they have expressed interest in returning to WWE, despite opening a wrestling school and a smoothie shop in the Orlando area.

It's not like Pacman needed the money. He just wants to stay in the limelight while suspended from the NFL. That, then, makes him no different than US Champion MVP over on Smackdown, a character created last year as a parody of spoiled millionaires like Jones. All Jones is doing is making Vince McMahon look like a genius.

Meanwhile, as McMahon is returning to a prominent role on WWE-TV, he's had his hatchet man, John Lauranitis, dismiss a few people to clear some cash for the annual Diva Search, coming up next month, even though the first place contract's value has been reduced to $100,000 this time around.

The two original members of La Resistance, Sylvan Grenier & Rene Dupree, were cut within the last two weeks. Dupree had been on suspension for violating the wellness policy. Grenier was supposed to be given a fresh push with fellow Quebecois Maryse Oulette as his new valet. However, a lukewarm reaction at house shows isn't going to get you rave notices from the agents, and so, Maryse was sent down to Florida while Syl was given his release after 4 years.

Shantelle Taylor was reportedly a sensation as a masked, androgynous cruiserweight earlier this year. However, Uncreative didn't have a spot for her on the main roster at the time. Supposedly, they were going to finally call her up, but then changed plans. Aaron "Idol" Stevens had a cup of coffee as OVW champion earlier this year, and a brief stint on Smackdown, managed by then-heel Michelle McCool. However, Uncreative didn't have any room to bring him back up, and with Michelle now a babyface, well....!

Dupree is now in Japan. Grenier is likely to return to Montreal and work for local promotions unless he attracts interest overseas. Stevens is likely to end up doing indies. As for the 5 cut by TNA, expect all of them to be under the WWE umbrella by the time Wrestlemania 24 rolls around in March, with Runt reverting to Spike Dudley, and he & Lynn showing up in ECW.

The problem TNA has is that they're throwing bad money on top of bad money. Short-term quick fixes that are killing company morale. WWE, at least, can use the Diva Search to refortify their farm system by sending the women to either OVW or Florida Championship, especially if they're not ready to work for any of the three main brands right away. The common problem both promotions have, though, is that they may be cutting people that might be better fits into certain situations where others are currently placed.

For example, Serotonin never won a match on TV. With "Martyr" gone, the faction is down to Raven and "Havok" (Johnny Devine), and with Raven not in the best physical health, the gimmick is pretty much dead. Bentley mentioned in a radio interview that Dutch Mantel hated the gimmick, and used that bias to keep Serotonin from going over. Another example of TNA Creative ineptitude.

A proposed La Resistance reunion was curtailed when Dupree went on the suspended list. Uncreative could no longer wait for Dupree to come out of rehab and get back into action. Stevens could've been repackaged as a single, and by all rights, the role Mike Mizanin has now in ECW as a "chick magnet" is a more natural fit for Stevens' Idol gimmick. More proof that the moves you don't make are the ones you should.

Serotonin and the Basham/Damaja team should've been players for the tag titles in TNA, but then Jeff Jarrett decided that Kurt Angle, his new #1 heel, would hog all the titles for a spell. That may sound the death knell for TNA, even with expansion to 2 hours, because if people aren't sick of Angle's act already, they soon will be. Next time, we'll take a look at how TNA should take the X & tag titles off the Olympic Hypocrite, and at the same time restore some cred & respect for the promotion.