At this point, Big Brother 20 looks like it's Tyler's game to lose. Pretty much everyone on the house believes that he's on their side, which is exactly why Tyler did not use the Power of Veto to save either Rachel or Brett — even though he's supposed to be in an alliance with both of them.
Tyler's time in the house has been spent trying to convince others to act against their own best interests. Whether it's trying to get Kaitlyn to flip on her alliance or trying to encourage the HOH — a role that is being fulfilled this week by Bayleigh — to evict people that are not a threat to themselves, Tyler seems to be someone who thinks the best way to win Big Brother is to play the game hard and to be playing it constantly.
However, Tyler may have pulled a smart move during the Veto competition by showing restraint and not using the veto, solidifying that either Rachel or Brett of the Level 6 alliance will be going home. Tyler argued that he wanted to respect Bayleigh's nominations, which probably left Bayleigh and the FOUTTE alliance feeling confident that Tyler was on their side. Despite leaving two of his Level Six allies out to pasture, Big Brother fans believe that this will not affect anyone's feelings towards Tyler and that he'll continue to be the houseguest that everyone trusts.
While Tyler seems to be in control of the game, this week taught him a lesson in how no one can truly control all of Big Brother. At some point prior to the POV ceremony, Tyler asked Bayleigh who she would put up if one of her nominees was taken down. Bayleigh responded by saying she'd put Angela up, and soon after her conversation with Tyler started spreading a rumor that threw Rachel into a confused panic.
Bayleigh told Rachel that her conversation with Tyler was about Tyler conspiring to get Angela sent home, making Rachel think that Tyler's goal is trying to evict the women from the house. Rachel told this to Angela, who told this to Kaycee, who told this to Tyler. What started as a relatively innocuous question from Tyler turned into one of the most surprising instances of the telephone game in the Big Brother house, twisting Tyler's own intentions. While Tyler managed to convince Angela and Kaycee that he was not targeting any of the women in his Level Six alliance, the fact that things got so out of his control may have been what inspired him to lay low and not use the Veto this week.
Tyler's ability to keep a target off of his own back has been impressive, but it may be coming to an end. He's been successfully playing both sides of the house, but his reputation as a competition beast may start causing some people in the house to be afraid to keep him around. The houseguests gasped in awe when the saw Tyler's results for the Veto competition — which was so difficult that three competitors were disqualified because they couldn't complete the competition's puzzle within the time limit of thirty minutes. The fact that Tyler has stayed off of everyone's radar for so long is a huge accomplishment in Big Brother – but with an uncertain house and the members of his core alliance dwindling, Tyler's time in the house may be up sooner than he thinks.
