When AEW signed The Hardy Boyz, it felt like a huge win for Tony Khan. WWE had mishandled both Matt and Jeff and, in AEW, it felt like the future Hall of Famers could become huge draws again and partake in a series of dream matches.
Unfortunately, things didn't work out like that and, as time passed, we saw less and less of them both on TV. Injuries factored into that, as did Jeff's personal issues, but during the last year or so of their contract, it became clear Khan had given up on the iconic tag team.
Talking on his podcast, Matt shared his frustrations with how The Hardy Boyz were booked during their AEW run.
"I feel like one of the issues in AEW — and I said this before on Busted Open earlier today. Like, when we first came in and first getting used we were in a good spot, it was very cool what we were doing. I liked what Tony [Khan] was doing with us, and we were on the path to win the titles. And then Jeff got in trouble; Jeff messed up. And that was all on Jeff, that was not on Tony, that was not on AEW, that was on Jeff. And it just is what it is. So I did my thing, Jeff went and got himself right."
"Whenever he came back, you know, I figured, 'Oh, it will probably take a couple of months, two to three months to prove himself.' Because I knew where Jeff was here in his head, I knew what kind of positive headspace he was in and how good of a place he was in. I said 'It’ll probably take two or three months to like earn the trust back of these people, and then maybe we’ll be off and running.'"
"But just - after Jeff came back, we didn’t win any tag team matches for a year. It’s crazy. We’re the Hardys; we didn’t win a tag team match on TV in a year. And I mean, I brought this point up like, 'What are we doing? Like we need — just to give us a win. We don’t need to be the champions, we don’t need to be undefeated. But just like, we need a win at some point.' And it was just very frustrating."
Since leaving AEW, both Matt and Jeff have returned to TNA. There are many fans who believe we'll see them get one final run in WWE, though nothing definitive appears to be in the works on that front quite yet.
Asked why Jeff decided against signing a new deal with AEW, Matt put it down to his own frustrations with Khan's booking.
"The only time they offered Jeff a deal is when they offered me a deal. Jeff didn't care. Unless they offered him something that he liked, he was good. He wasn't going to reach out. As Jeff was saying, 'No one has reached out, my deal might be up.' I said, 'I'm enjoying my time in TNA. Jeff isn't looking to re-sign, no one has reached out, Jeff doesn't feel like he's necessarily wanted there."
Between this, CM Punk's unhappiness in AEW, and the fact several AEW stars have returned or chosen to sign with WWE, it's become clear the grass isn't greener on the other side after all.
You can hear more from Matt in the player below.