Samoa Joe Has Reportedly Replaced Jerry Lawler Permanently on WWE Raw

Samoa Joe has been out of action since suffering a concussion back in February, but he hasn't let that injury take him out of the business entirely. Joe has settled into the role of RAW commentator nicely and excelled while doing so. Now, a new reports suggests that move is permanent for the time being. According to this week's Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Joe has taken over Jerry Lawler's role on the show, at least until he is cleared to medically return to the ring. At that point, a decision will need to be made.

Joe started back with the RAW announce team on April 27th, but this is not his first foray into that role. Joe previously received high marks from industry experts last year when he filled in on RAW in an announcing role while recovering from a broken thumb.

It's anyone's guess right now as to what will happen when Joe is medically cleared to return to the ring. There have been some discussions that he will continue to serve as a commentator while still participating in angles that bring him back to the ring to wrestle. Obviously, this has been done previously with Jerry Lawler, but we'd expect it to be more of a regular occurrence for Joe. However, there's no denying that Joe is very good in the announcing role, so it's not likely that WWE wants to lose him entirely on that front. At the very worst, he looks to have carved out a role within the industry following the end of his in ring career if he chooses to stay around the product.

Joe's most recent injury happened during a commercial shoot in late February. Joe's main roster run has been derailed by injury numerous times in recent years despite him clearly performing as one of the top heels in the company when healthy. This has caused a WWE world championship to elude him.

When Joe was asked if holding a world title was important to him during an interview with the Gorilla Position podcast last August, he had an interesting response.

"For my legacy and for what the fans who have followed me throughout my career, it's very important. For me personally, I find a great amount of enjoyment in what I do. I'm able to do what I do around the world, this is my dream job and I love it," he said. "That being said, it's also very important to me, damn it. Are you crazy? Of course, it's important to me and my legacy. It's important to both."

What have you thought of Samoa Joe on commentary? Let us know in the comments section below, and give me a follow on Twitter @ryandroste for all things WWE and AEW.