One of WWE’s most popular performers has been absent from weekly television for almost a full year. Former WWE SmackDown color commentator Pat McAfee left his position on the blue brand’s announce desk this past fall due to upcoming commitments with ESPN College Gameday. While it was initially expected that McAfee would return to his Friday night position within WWE after the college football season wrapped up, McAfee has remained away from WWE TV barring a couple of surprise appearances at WWE Royal Rumble and WWE WrestleMania 39.
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Even though he is no longer a WWE regular on camera, McAfee emphasized that he is in constant communication with the sports-entertainment giant.
“Myself, Michael Cole, Nick Khan, Kevin Dunn, Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Vincent Kennedy McMahon, we are all still very much in contact with each other,” McAfee toldย SI Media Podcast. “My relationship with WWE is, I don’t want to say stronger than it’s ever been, but actually stronger than it’s ever been and we are all very much talking about how I get back into the universe because I love it. I love it, I think I’m good at it, I think I’m supposed to be in there. I love that place. Our relationship is very strong. We’re working. We’re all trying to figure it out.”
McAfee’s schedule is very busy at the moment as he recently inked a deal with ESPN to bring his daily The Pat McAfee Show to the worldwide leader in sports. This 5-year, $85 million contract will see The Pat McAfee Show broadcasted on both ESPN and ESPN’s YouTube channel every weekday for two hours. The popular program will officially make the change this fall.
Inside the squared circle world, McAfee has primarily served as an on-air talent for WWE but has also mixed it up in the ring on a couple of occasions. He wrestled his first official match in Summer 2020, squaring off against Adam Cole in NXT. He then teamed with Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch to challenge Undisputed Era inside War Games later that fall. Once he joined the main roster as a WWE SmackDown commentator, McAfee put the in-ring career on pause, but would still lace up his boots for the odd program against Austin Theory and Baron Corbin. His last match came at WWE WrestleMania 39 where he defeated The Miz in an impromptu bout.
