All WWE fans are hoping that it's a matter of when, and not if the company's doctors will clear Daniel Bryan to wrestle inside their squared circle again after over two years away.

The decision as to whether or not Bryan wrestles in the WWE again likely rests in the hands of the company's head of medical Dr. Joseph Maroon. If he clears him, great! If not, then that will likely mean the end of Bryan's career in the WWE too, even as SmackDown Live's general manager.

WWE has some big plans for The King of Beards if he is able to get cleared as well, as reports last week stated he could possibly make his WWE in-ring return at SummerSlam in 2018, most likely against SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon, as well as working on a limited schedule.

But if WWE is unable to clear Bryan, many believe this will lead to the departure of the former WWE Champion once his contract expires in September 2018, as he has already received clearance by several doctors outside of the WWE to wrestle again.

This is a leverage he will use when approaching other promoters to wrestle again, and the likes of Ring of Honor (ROH) and New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) would gladly sign Bryan to their promotions.

However, WWE has a plan up their sleeve for Bryan to try and keep him with the company and away from the likes of ROH and NJPW, even if he isn't cleared to wrestle, according to reports.

Cageside Seats has stated that WWE is building to a Shane McMahon vs. Daniel Bryan feud next summer, even if Bryan never gets cleared, meaning another superstar would be wrestling in Bryan's place.

Ideally, WWE fans would like for Bryan to be medically cleared so that he can compete against Shane-O-Mac at SummerSlam in 2018, but having some else wrestle on behalf of him isn't that bad of an alternative. It still leaves room for Bryan to possibly interfere in the match in some way, which would be quite the sight to see after all these years.

This report could also mean that Bryan kicks off their feud by interfering in the tag team match between the team of Randy Orton and Shinsuke Nakamura against Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn at Clash of Champions this weekend, which Shane McMahon is the special guest referee, to swing result against Shane-O-Mac desires.

One thing is for certain, it looks like WWE has big plans for Bryan before his current deal expires next year in September.