Welcome to Bleacher Report's live coverage of the last SmackDown of 2024 on December 27.

Not only was it the final episode of the year, but this also marked the final two-hour episode since the show will begin airing a three-hour episode each week beginning in January.

With The Royal Rumble more than a month away on February 1, WWE finds itself with a rare longer stretch of time to properly build up every storyline leading into a PLE.

This week's show featured a six-woman tag match, a U.S. title celebration for Chelsea Green, Nick Aldis addressing Kevin Owens' attack last week, and much more.

Let's take a look at everything that happened on this week's SmackDown.

Bianca Belair, Naomi and Bayley vs. Nia Jax, Tiffany Stratton and Candice LeRae

SmackDown opened with a video recap of Kevin Owens attacking Cody Rhodes after their match at Saturday Night's Main Event followed by an announcement from Nick Aldis. He confirmed KO still has the Winged Eagle belt but is not the WWE champion. He gave Owens until the end of the night to return the belt or face consequences.

The first match of the night was a six-woman tag match with Bayley, Naomi and Bianca Belair taking on Nia Jax, Tiffany Stratton and Candice LeRae.

The EST and Tiffy started for their teams with an energetic exchange. We went to the break with the babyfaces in control, and that was still the case when we returned.

This was a decent match that was hindered by repetitiveness and a lack of stakes. We've seen all of these women fight in various combinations for months, so it almost felt like a rerun.

The good news is they were given enough time so that this match included two commercial breaks, so at least it didn't feel rushed or like anyone was left out.

Tiffy saw a potential opportunity to cash in on Jax when she was down, but LeRae stopped her. The argument allowed Naomi to pin LeRae for the win.

Result: Naomi, Bayley and Belair defeated Jax, LeRae and Stratton

Grade: B-

Notable Moments and Observations

• Watching it back in slow motion you can really see how well Rhodes sold the package piledriver. 
• Nia Jax gave a pre-match promo and implied Belair was the one responsible for Jade Cargill's attack. 
• It didn't look like Bayley, Naomi and Belair planned their three-person attack when the other team was outside the ring, so all three of them did something different. It looked very awkward. 
• The way LeRae swung Bayley so her head hit the ring post looked great from the angle it was shot from. 

Braun Strowman vs. Austin Theory

After taking a countout loss to Carmelo Hayes last week, Braun Strowman was looking to take out his frustrations on Austin Theory. Grayson Waller was by his side, as usual.

A-Town Down tried his best and even got Strowman up onto his shoulder for a moment in an impressive show of strength, but he was quickly thrown out of the ring as the show cut to a break.

We returned to see Theory in control until Strowman slapped his chest hard enough to make him see stars.

After failing to carry Strowman on his shoulder for his finisher, The Monster Among Men hit a powerslam for the pin and the win. This was an uneventful but entertaining encounter that may lead to a bigger feud as 2025 begins.

Result: Strowman defeated Theory

Grade: B-

Notable Moments and Observations

• WWE teased a breakup with Theory and Waller for months and then just sort of forgot about it. 
• Waller is one of those guys who can make almost anything funny if he tries. The look on his face after Strowman chopped Theory was hilarious.

The Street Profits vs. Angel and Berto

WWE decked out the ring in red, white and blue decorations for Green's United States Championships celebration. She gave an egotistical speech before Mia Yim interrupted and came to the ring with a kendo stick. Niven narrowly saved Green but took the brunt of the damage.

Backstage, Pretty Deadly caused a fight between the Street Profits and Legado Del Fantasma that led to Nick Aldis telling them to get to the ring.

We returned from a break to see the match already in progress. The Profits were under the impression it was Angel who attacked them a couple of weeks ago, so they were looking for some retribution.

Los Garzas was able to turn things around eventually and took control before another commercial break.

This was a fun and fast-paced match that allowed all four men to look good. Ford got the win for his team, but Los Garzas came close.

Result: The Profits defeated Los Garzas

Grade: B

Notable Moments and Observations

• Piper Niven called Chelsea Green the longest-reigning champion. Fightful made that joke and it looks like WWE saw it and ran with it. 
• Pretty Deadly protecting DIY doesn't make a lot of sense. 
• Dawkins has an awesome hot tag sequence. 

Carmelo Hayes vs. Sami Zayn

Carmelo Hayes interrupted a conversation between Zayn and Aldis backstage, so Zayn requested this match to teach the young man a lesson.

The crowd was heavily behind Sami Uso in this one and chanted for him throughout the first half of the match before a break.

These are two guys who are known for their ability to put on exciting performances, so they found their groove easily and had the crowd cheering and jeering for every spot.

Not only did they put on a good match, but they easily stole the show on a somewhat lackluster episode to wrap up 2024.

Hayes avoided a Helluva Kick and ended up running away from Strowman, who came out to put him back in the ring. The new Bloodline attacked Zayn in the ring. Once Strowman saw it, he came to Zayn's aid. Solo Sikoa and company got the best of them and took them out despite the efforts of several officials to stop them.

Result: No Contest

Grade: B+

Notable Moments and Observations

• Apollo Crews told the Profits it was really DIY who attacked them last week, so Pretty Deadly is going to have some explaining to do. 
• Zayn's moonsault from the barricade looked great. 
• Hayes hit a really nice springboard crossbody. 

The Final Word

This week's SmackDown wasn't a bad show, but it definitely didn't set the world on fire either.

Zayn and Hayes had the best match of the night, but ending without a real result took the wind out of its sails at the end.

The Profits and Los Garzas had a fun encounter, and with SmackDown about to go to three hours, the tag team division should benefit greatly from more screen time.

The show ended with Owens showing up with the winged eagle title as requested by Aldis. Right after Aldis gave him an ultimatum, Rhodes showed up with the real title.

The American Nightmare proposed a Ladder match to settle it once and for all, so Aldis made it official for the Royal Rumble. KO ended the show by attacking and stomping on Rhodes' injured neck.

Grade: B-