A stagnant, oversaturated product isn't just causing WWE and Vince McMahon to lose big-name Superstars to competitors like All Elite Wrestling—it's also causing some on the payroll to speak out. 

And as always, industry legend Mick Foley is spot on with his analysis. 

Foley recently noted that WWE has a serious issue on its hands because it is "no longer the place for talent to aspire to."

It's hard to disagree on that front. It was AEW, not WWE, that lured CM Punk out of retirement after a seven-year hiatus. Adam Cole, the main face of NXT and surefire main-roster star for WWE, instead left and joined AEW during the recent All-Out pay-per-view that also featured the debut of Daniel Bryan, back under his old-school name, Bryan Danielson. 

Danielson himself even told fans on a broadcast that he loved his time with WWE and was thankful, but that what was happening in AEW was just that much more exciting.

Foley noted in his comments that part of the issue is AEW is just that good of a pro wrestling product. But he also heaped blame on WWE for a litany of reasons. According to Mat Men's Andrew Zarian (h/t Cageside Seat's Randall Ortman), there are those in WWE who are "very unhappy" with Foley's comments. 

Those same folks in WWE will need to get mad at Booker T then, too. While reviewing All Out on the Hall of Fame podcast, he agreed with Foley (h/t Chris Siggia of Wrestlingnews.co): 

"I want to talk about those comments because I think there's a lot of validity to those comments that Mick Foley made. It was critical in a constructive criticism way. I can't disagree with Mick Foley on anything. He's a smart dude, and he's very, very intelligent as well. He knows his stuff. He's been there. He's done it, so coming from Mick Foley, you have to take it and say, 'OK, let me look at this.' ... I agree with Mick Foley 100 percent. We need to get our ass in gear, bottom line."

Sometimes the truth hurts, right? And funny reality check: The worst WWE can do to either of these guys is cut them loose from legends contracts. They'd then probably be free to make appearances in AEW (and boy would it be fun to see Foley against Jon Moxley, sorry), where legends like Arn Anderson and Sting get spectacular usage when on television—but that's just one of many issues with WWE right now. 

To say this problem has been building for WWE for a long time is an understatement. Contentment leaves even the biggest of companies vulnerable to legitimate competition, and that is what's happening here. The television contracts are fat and the social media numbers huge, but poor, if not lazy decisions have left WWE in a bad spot. 

Where to even start at this point? Cole split at least in part because most NXT call-ups to the main roster end in disaster. Karrion Kross is merely the latest example, but look at Keith Lee or Aleister Black. The latter split after WWE made him a shocking cut and is already prospering with the creative freedom AEW allows. 

Speaking of surprising cuts, don't forget Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt and a huge chunk of NXT as McMahon himself takes over the broadcast again and completely gives it a facelift. Even Ric Flair got let go. Ric. Flair. 

That NXT debacle stings, too. While pretending AEW wasn't competition, WWE threw NXT on to the same night as AEW's Dynamite, largely got walloped over time, moved back over to another night and now has elected to completely rebuild from the ground up.

The fine details are a big problem, too. While AEW was building up to the Punk debut and other feats, WWE was off having its second-biggest event of the year, SummerSlam. That featured 54-year-old Goldberg in a title match, an advertised Sasha Banks match that morphed into a weird Becky Lynch return that buried Bianca Belair and a rough-looking Brock Lesnar return to set up yet another feud with Roman Reigns. 

Make no mistake, some of the above can still work. The talent is certainly great enough. But continuity and meaningful matches don't happen often in WWE. The company is way too focused on individual moments (like Lynch's return, instead of the long-term impact on Belair) and WrestleMania booking. It makes everything else feel like placeholders or stuck in a holding pattern. 

Revisit this in six months or so. The odds are Belair doesn't come out any better from the odd Lynch return that felt like WWE overreacting to Punk's debut elsewhere. Little likely comes from Finn Balor's feud with Roman Reigns because he's cannon fodder until Lesnar shows up. Goldberg, despite repeated losses, gets another unquestioned title match at a show in Saudi Arabia. 

It's on WWE to prove that sort of thing wrong. Long-term booking has to be a priority. Building up the next generation of stars is a must. What's hair-pulling frustrating is that the social media numbers and television deals the company adores would come either way—go check the numbers on Punk's debut or the Lucha Bros finally winning tag titles. 

The best hope fans can have is that some of that energy WWE might spend getting mad at a Foley or Booker instead gets put into the problems they rightfully brought up in the first place. Because if not, fans easily have the ability to choose to look elsewhere. 

One glance at the ratings shows AEW keeps gaining momentum while WWE holds steady, which suggests names like Punk and the sheer fun that is AEW keeps bringing aboard lapsed fans. But at some point, AEW, especially with major star power aboard now, can start poaching from the bigger company. 

Some of the Superstar poaching was inevitable because WWE had hoarded the most talented roster in the sport's history. But more recent names going over tell a different story, one Foley explained to perfection. The fan poaching comes next. And while none of it is a guarantee McMahon and Co. pull a swerve and actually start to change (they've really only done it once—in response to WCW), the pressure is palpable. 

Either way, pro wrestling has competition and is fun again. The Superstars past and present can feel it, and so can fans.