WWE on Sunday will hold the last of its four "major" 2015 pay-per-views when Survivor Series emanates live from the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

While the popularity of WrestleMania is unmatched, SummerSlam has morphed into the company's second-biggest event each year and Royal Rumble always brings a high level of intrigue, Survivor Series has often fallen by the wayside with little occuring that has greater implications for the future of the company.

Not this year.

With the WWE World Heavyweight Championship vacated and a tournament set to crown a new champion at the event, Survivor Series has meaning once again. WWE will also be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the debut of The Undertaker, who made his first appearance for the company at Survivor Series in 1990.

CBS Sports has decided to give some of our staffers a breather from our usual roles. We will break down what you need to know -- and perhaps more importantly, what we're thinking -- entering Sunday's event, which will air live on the WWE Network beginning at 8 p.m.

First, as a matter of introduction ...

Dave Richard, Fantasy Football Writer: A life-long wrestling fan who began his career writing a popular column on independent wrestling website TPWW.net, Dave became a producer at WrestleLine.com, one of the leading sports entertainment websites in the early 2000s. In his role there, he was backstage at several wrestling events and interviewed tons of superstars. More recently, he lost a bet to his friend, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, and had to do DDP Yoga with him as a consequence. Follow him on Twitter @daverichard.

Adam Silverstein, College Football and Golf Editor: The owner and editor of the uber-successful Top Rope Newsletter (1996-2002) and a wrestling contributor for the Miami Herald those same years, Adam has been following sports entertainment for more than two decades. He's attended two WrestleManias (XXIV, XXVIII), covered countless live shows and interviewed some of the biggest names in the business, including Mick Foley and Dusty Rhodes. Adam (@SilversteinAdam on Twitter) once did the head shake with D'Lo Brown.

Nick Kostos, SportsLine Analyst: Ever since watching the Ultimate Warrior/Randy Savage career-ending match at WrestleMania VII, Nick has been entranced by the world of professional wrestling. He's attended three of the last four WrestleManias, believes Bret did indeed screw Bret, and considers Shawn Michaels to be the greatest of all time. And no, he will not accept an argument to the contrary. You can follow Nick on Twitter @TheKostos.

Matt Snyder, MLB Writer: Initially getting into wrestling during the first big boom in the 1980s, Matt was actually in attendance with his father and brother for the infamous Hulk Hogan screwjob in Market Square Arena (Indianapolis) that led to a tournament for the title in WrestleMania IV. After a sabbatical from watching the product, Matt got reintroduced to it in college and has passed his watching habits on to his young son. Find him on Twitter @MattSnyderCBS.

And now, the roundtable on the squared circle ...

Survivor Series will feature the final matches of a WWE title tournament. (CBS Sports Graphic)
Survivor Series will feature the final matches of a WWE title tournament. (CBS Sports Graphic)

1. Let's start with the big news entering the event: No Seth Rollins at Survivor Series. How much were you enjoying his run, and how bad was the timing of Rollins' injury (which will keep him out for 6-9 months, likely through WrestleMania) for WWE and its creative process?

Richard: I wouldn't use the term "enjoying." He was good, but I never sat around wondering, "What is Rollins going to do next?" I rarely looked forward to watching him, save for the match against Brock Lesnar, because I wanted to see how badly Lesnar would throw him around. Sparingly did he do things that made me chuckle -- dancing with New Day, laughing maniacally after lucking into a PPV win -- and rarely did my jaw drop because of what he did in the ring. The WWE really dropped the ball on turning chicken guts into chicken salad here. In the past, when an injury has opened up a spot for someone to get a push they've creatively found a way to get the spot filled.

This time around? A 16-man tournament for the WWE title. Fine, but shouldn't a 16-man tournament feature the top 16 wrestlers? No Bray Wyatt, but Kalisto is in it? No Undertaker but Tyler Breeze, Stardust and Titus O'Neil are in it? And you couldn't get John Cena to fly in for one match to lend some credibility to the whole thing? What a wasted opportunity to draw in some of the fans they've lost over the last year. Survivor Series was built on elimination matches -- why not have some elimination matches to help crown a new champion? And seriously, how cool would it have been to somehow have The Undertaker win the title on his 25th anniversary of being in the WWE? The creative team blew it.

Silverstein: It's not ideal, certainly. The good news for WWE is that Rollins has established himself as a legitimate star. He gets heat with ease and could probably draw cheers just as easily if brought back as a face. It's never good to unexpectedly lose a star, especially your world title holder, but it does present WWE creative with the opportunity to fill the void by completing the development of some other young performers that it has continued to let waste away. Whether creative actually does that, well, that remains to be seen. Call me a skeptic.

Kostos: It's bad, and it would be bad regardless of the time it occurred. The reason is simple --Seth Rollins is the best pure talent in WWE, and it's not close. He's good on the mic, his workrate is through the roof, and he draws a great reaction from the audience. Losing him for WrestleMania season stinks -- not just for WWE, but for observers like me as well.

Snyder: I like Rollins, and he's unbelievably talented, but I was starting to get worried about things being too predictable. Run someone with momentum at him and somehow he weasels his way into a win. Maybe he was going to drop the belt to Reigns at Survivor Series, but the injury seems to have brought a welcome freshness to the title picture. The timing of him missing WrestleMania is bad, but I'm hoping he returns as a monster face, much like Triple H once did after a major injury. There could be something fun as a silver lining.

2. For those that thought Survivor Series would be without one of its signature 5-on-5 elimination matches for the first time since 1987 -- think again. WWE will hold one, though it has not named the participants just yet. Do you enjoy these matches and do you think this is a misstep for them to just throw it away like this and not build up some legitimate hype?

Richard: This is another botch by the WWE creative team. How about an elimination match between The Wyatt Family and Undertaker, Kane and two others (the Usos, perhaps)? That's how you keep the elimination match tradition going. As it stands, I don't care. It's just a way to get a bunch of wrestlers on the card who otherwise wouldn't be on the card. Yawn.

Silverstein: Look, the Royal Rumble has a Royal Rumble. Elimination Chamber has an Elimination Chamber (or two or three). Survivor Series should have a Survivor Series. The issue here is that WWE has spent no time -- legitimately, not one second on television -- building a match that is the event's namesake.  I want to see one, but I don't have any investment into the match, especially because I don't know who's participating. As to what I'd like to see? Let's get Dolph Ziggler (competing on the pre-show), Cesaro and other marginalized talents that should otherwise be in the main event picture and have a heck of a match. Make something no one knows about something they'll remember.

Kostos: Wrestling was hokey back in the late '80s and early '90s, and while that's not necessarily an insult, it's not exactly a good thing, either. Doing too many traditional Survivor Series elimination matches pigeonholes creative into inane alliances in the storyline that will dissipate as soon as the event ends. So I'm not terribly upset that WWE has severely limited them over the years. But am I upset that there isn't even one that was built up? Yeah. I mean, the event is called Survivor Series. Why not just do a Royal Rumble without, you know, the Royal Rumble?

Snyder: They should always have at least one traditional Survivor Series match, otherwise the name is a bit stupid (though I guess not necessarily if they had held a few more rounds of the tournament). It couldn't have hurt to legitimately build toward this mystery match, for sure, though I'm not sure how many people who aren't going to watch would totally change their minds based upon the participants, absent a jaw-dropper of a surprise.

3. Speaking of a messed up card, this is one of few WWE pay-per-views where there really is not an undercard -- it's really just a triple main event. As such, let's discuss the championship tournament, which includes both the Intercontinental and US Champions. What do you think of the idea for a tournament for the vacated title, and were these the right four guys to be finalists?

Richard: It's pretty obvious I don't think the singles tournament was the right way to go. I'm fine with the four guys left, but let's be honest, everyone sees the Reigns-Ambrose final coming from a mile away. There's a better shot of C.M. Punk coming back to WWE than Del Rio winning this thing.

Silverstein: I don't want to steal Nick's thunder (see below), but yes, three of the four competitors in this match strike a perfectly fine chord with me. I have no idea what Del Rio is doing there. Similarly, I have no idea why WWE saddled him with this awful new gimmick; but I digress. The tournament is a fine idea, and I like that we're getting the semifinals in addition to the title match on the show. It has a King of the Ring flavor to it, and I always loved that event (still would if WWE didn't pull it off pay-per-views and turn it into an absolute joke. KOTR used to be, well, a king-maker. Past winners included Bret Hart, Steve Austin, Triple H, Edge and Brock Lesnar. More recent winners (2008, 2010 and 2015, respectively) are William Regal, Sheamus and Bad News Barrett. The bracket idea is a fun and successful one if done correctly, which WWE has not in the recent. It can on Sunday, though.

Kostos: The tournament was a fine solution to a horrendous problem, and I'm a huge fan of wrestling tournaments in general. For me, it's always provided a sense of extra excitement, so I'm into it, and I loved the 1998 world title tournament at Survivor Series. Do I think the semifinalists were chosen correctly? For the most part, yes. Reigns and Ambrose were obvious, and I think Kevin Owens deserved this push. My one complaint would be Del Rio over Cesaro. Look, I know Cesaro and Reigns had a great match on Raw this past Monday, but why not have that match at the pay-per-view and give Cesaro an extra rub? But for the most part, I'm into it

Snyder: I immediately loved the idea of a tournament and then was disappointed to see almost all of it was transpiring on Raw and Smackdown leading up to the event. They could have had the quarterfinals or even more on Survivor Series, especially in light of such a small card among the types of guys who would be in the tourney. Maybe not even reveal all the tournament participants to let people's minds wander (Brock Lesnar? John Cena? Daniel Bryan?).

4. The Divas Championship match between champion Charlotte, Ric Flair’s daughter, and Paige has been pushed hard. Has WWE done anything to get you excited for this match as the company continues to advance its women’s division?

WWE Divas Championship: Charlotte (c) vs. Paige

Richard: I'm not as into the Divas division as others, but even I will admit I'm intrigued to see a match between Paige and Charlotte. They're two young talents who have proven to be entertaining and the build-up has been ... different. And different is good for WWE. Prediction: Paige wins the title

Silverstein: There is a slow build on WWE television to women's wrestling becoming more relevant, exciting and entertaining. It's working, but it's taking a long time. NXT did a great job developing female characters and storylines, and while it's trickling its way onto the main roster, it's going to take a while. The good news is that Charlotte and Paige are two of the brightest bulbs the main roster has got at this point. These two are going to put on a tremendous match, and it may very well steal the show if given the opportunity to do so. Perhaps when all is said and done, WWE can go back to calling it the women's division and throw "divas" out the window. Prediction: Paige wins the title

Kostos: I might be in the minority, but I loved Paige's promo to close out Raw on Monday. Professional wrestling has been using real-life tragedy to further storylines and attract heat for years, so what Paige said about the late Reid Flair is nothing new. Both Paige and Charlotte can work, so I am excited for this match, and the promo on Monday added more sizzle to the proceedings for this viewer. Prediction: Charlotte retains the title

Snyder: I love that they've actually built a story around the two participants and scrapped the whole "we're three teams of three that just wrestle each other every week with no story advancement." They're still playing off the team angle, but fortunately Becky hasn't even been involved in a few go-rounds. There's room to further the entire division if they just have an alliance or even stable or two but mostly let the big guns serve as individual wrestlers. Paige and Charlotte are more than capable of being singles stars on their own and have already proven as much. Prediction: Charlotte retains the title

5. WWE has been building up Survivor Series as the 25th anniversary of The Undertaker’s debut. Does the match they have scheduled -- between The Undertaker and Kane against two yet-to-be-determined Wyatt Family members -- get you juiced at all? Does this feel like his final stretch with the company now that he’s appearing and competing outside of WrestleMania?

The Undertaker / Kane vs. The Wyatt Family (two members)

Richard: Nope, not as excited about this feud as I could have been. It was another rush job by WWE to get Taker and Wyatt in a match. I wouldn't be shocked if Wyatt's crew wins just so they can use the victory to push Wyatt as a monster heel. They could also do something unique and have Braun Strowman get the pin and make him look like the monster. Prediction: The Wyatt Family wins

Silverstein: Yawn. Never have I cared less about a match involving The Undertaker. He goes from a red-hot feud with Lesnar (which itself got boring by version 3.0 of the main event) to facing Bray Wyatt ... again ... this time with his equally old, more irrelevant "brother" by his side ... with WWE needing theatrics like stunningly-bad lightning bolts to try and advance the storyline. Oh, and Wyatt may not even be in the match, because it's family vs. family but two-on-two even though one of those families has four people. To me, Taker competing more often not only speaks to his improved health but also that he's on his final run with the company, with his last match potentially at WrestleMania. He's had an incredible career, and I hope the next few months are filled with much better storylines and matches. Prediction: The Undertaker and Kane win

Kostos: I love having The Undertaker around. He's a living legend and adds significant gravity to the proceedings. But this angle and match is the height of stupidity. I'm 32 years old, and I'm sorry, but the idea of Taker and Kane shooting lightning bolts at Bray Wyatt (and vice versa) not only does nothing for me, but turns me off to the entire angle. Taker and Kane will obviously go over, so it's not even like there's an element of surprise built it. I do feel like Taker is nearing the end, and I hope WWE does the right thing at WrestleMania by having John Cena put over Taker in The Deadman's final match. Prediction: The Undertaker and Kane win

Snyder: This is a tough one. It feels a bit empty to only have two of the four Wyatt members, but you can't exactly keep the Wyatts looking strong if a pair of 50 year olds trucks all four of them. Plus, there aren't really two guys who would make sense to add to the Taker/Kane side without feeling real forced (or bringing back someone who can't physically do it, like The Acolytes). I still enjoy seeing the Brothers of Destruction together, and I feel like this could be an entertaining match but I can't exactly say I'm fired up for it. Guessing that Strowman and Luke Harper are the challengers. Prediction: The Undertaker and Kane win

6. OK, let's get to an overall prediction for the World Heavyweight Championship. Who do you have winning the two semifinals and then eventually walking away as champion? And how is it all going to go down?

WWE World Heavyweight Championship tournament: Roman Reigns vs. Alberto Del Rio | Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens

Richard: First, Ambrose beats Owens and Reigns beats Del Rio. That much everyone's expecting. What I would love to see is Reigns turn on Ambrose in the title match and joins The Authority. What I would be perfectly fine with seeing is Ambrose turning on Reigns and joining The Authority. What the horrible creative team will probably do? Reigns and Ambrose have a monster match where Reigns ekes out a win, then Sheamus comes out, beats up both guys and cashes in his Money in the Bank briefcase, walking out as champion to a chorus of boos (and me instantly shutting off my connected TV in disgust). Prediction: Sheamus leaves as champion

Silverstein: WWE felt the growing fervor of their decision to book Reigns over Lesnar at WrestleMania and made the snap decision to go with Rollins cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase; it was a good one. Similarly, I think WWE understands that the expectation is for Reigns and Ambrose to meet in the finals of this tournament. While Reigns gets there, I think WWE actually puts Owens over Ambrose, perhaps due to some interference by The Authority, and sets up a very physical final. I still don't think Reigns is ready to carry the strap for the company; in fact, Owens is probably better suited simply due to his tremendous ability on the mic. But in the end, I see Sheamus threatening with a cash-in but Reigns ultimately surviving, winning and taking the title as a face. Not as exciting and much more boring but exactly what WWE has wanted for the last seven months. Prediction: Roman Reigns leaves as champion 

Kostos: I'd be stunned if it were anyone except for Reigns and Ambrose in the final. That's the easy prediction, and it should be the correct prediction. As for the result, I believe Reigns wins the title and turns heel in the process, joining The Authority. You can build real-life emotion into the story, as Reigns can tell the WWE Universe that they never wanted him as champion, so he joined Triple H to finally win the belt, and Reigns would draw massive heel heat. They could do Reigns/Ambrose at the Royal Rumble, and then a heel Reigns against a face Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. That would be awesome. ... So of course, Reigns will probably win the belt clean and then Sheamus will cash in his Money in the Bank, causing wrestling fans worldwide to throw up in their Guinness. Prediction: Sheamus leaves as champion

Snyder: Roman over Del Rio seems too obvious to where it makes you question yourself, right? Still, it has to be Reigns. It's his time. On the other side, I could see it going either way. Ambrose and Reigns could play a nice Face vs. Face where they put on a hell of a show and one "brother" respectfully holds up the other brother's hand at the end of the match, but it also adds the intrigue of a possible monster heel turn -- and sets up a future feud with a returning face Rollins down the road, too. There's also the chance Owens wins and puts on an incredible show with Reigns in the main event, with Roman overcoming a meddling Triple H (on Owens' behalf, of course). It's hard to see Owens taking this thing, but it's not an impossibility by any stretch. He could handle it. I'll predict it's Ambrose and then Reigns goes over in the main event without either one turning heel yet. Ambrose finally gives in on Monday Night Raw and goes to the dark side. Prediction: Roman Reigns leaves as champion.