Things are reportedly getting very tense inside WWE following last week's NXT releases.

During last week's episode of Friday Night SmackDown, it was announced that WWE had released referee NXT Stephon Smith and 12 wrestlers from the brand: Bronson Reed, Jake Atlas, Bobby Fish, Kona Reeves, Mercedes Martinez, Tyler Rust, Giant Zanjeer, Asher Hale, Leon Ruff, Zechariah Smith, Desmond Troy and Ari Sterling.

In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported that Vince McMahon, John Laurinaitis and Bruce Prichard made the decisions on which talents to release. Interestingly, the report outlined that Paul Levesque (Triple H) and Shawn Michaels didn't "have a say in the cuts."

According to Meltzer, this "led to real morale issues in NXT, a division which has not had this problem in the past." He also added that there appears to be an internal "power struggle." Apparently, the struggle involves some in the company who are worried about their jobs for when Triple H takes over for McMahon and those who "support" the former.

Finally, the report noted that Triple H was once considered "untouchable." However, the loss to AEW Dynamite in the Wednesday Night Wars reportedly "gave both his detractors and those who felt he would replace them the obvious ammunition."

Following the announcement of AEW's Dynamite program, WWE announced that NXT would move to Wednesday nights on USA Network. The two shows competed over an 18-month span, but the wars were largely dominated by AEW. After WrestleMania 37, NXTwas moved to Tuesdays.

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On Tuesday, WrestleVotes reported that tensions were "running high" at the Performance Center prior to this week's episode of NXT.

Better Figure It Out...

Another NXT story to follow closely: Adam Cole's WWE contract is reportedly set to expire after NXT TakeOver 36 on Aug. 22, one day after SummerSlam 2021. Cole reportedly attended SmackDown last week and met with McMahon. Obviously, losing Cole would be giant blow to a brand that has already lost several quality talents.

There is clearly a lot of fixing up to do on the NXT brand, from overall morale to long-term direction. More importantly, Triple H, McMahon and company officials need to be on the same page here. NXT may not be competing with AEW anymore, but the brand is still an ultra-valuable part of the WWE business here. Hopefully, everyone can put their differences aside and establish a proper plan together.

NEXT: [Report] Major Update On Adam Cole's WWE Contract Situation