Why Pat McAfee Suddenly Disappeared From Raw (WWE News)
Pat McAfee reveals the reason for his recent WWE absence.
Having been absent from WWE for the past three weeks, Pat McAfee has revealed why he's been away from the Raw announce booth.
Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show, the former Indianapolis Colts punter explained that he's simply had some time off to recharge his batteries.
As McAfee explained, via f4wonline:
"[I've been] continuing to, like, kinda catch up on life as a whole. Post-Money in the Bank, pre-Night of Champions, [I] was getting pretty exhausted there. So, shoutout to everybody at WWE for looking out for me, too. Very, very thankful."
In his absence, Wade Barrett filled in alongside Michael Cole for one Raw outing, then the past two Raws have had Corey Graves with Cole.
While Pat McAfee is a huge name in the world of sports, media, and beyond, his commentary does split opinion. Pat's energy and enthusiasm are undeniable, and he brings a more relaxed atmosphere to the commentary desk, with many giving McAfee plenty of credit for bringing something different out of Michael Cole, particularly once Vince McMahon was no longer in the announcers' ears. On the other side of that, Pat does have a habit of talking over major moments at times when such moments need time to breathe, and some find that energy and enthusiasm to be a little too much.
The fact that McAfee specifically mentioned Night of Champions, that may well be an indicator he'll be back on the call as soon as next week's post-NOC episode of Raw, although that's purely speculation on your writer's part.
Pat McAfee In WWE
A lifelong pro wrestling fan, Pat McAfee formally signed with WWE in late 2018 on the back of a handful of NXT appearances that often saw him interact with Adam Cole. While Pat was involved in pre-shows and eventually NXT commentary, it didn't take long for him and Cole to settle things in the ring, with McAfee's first match under the WWE umbrella - having wrestled one previous match for IWA East Coast back in 2009 - being a loss to the Undisputed Era man at NXT TakeOver XXX in August 2020.
The issues between McAfee and Cole rumbled on throughout the rest of the year, culminating at NXT TakeOver: WarGames that December. There, Pat and his self-titled Kings of NXT group - McAfee, Pete Dunne, Oney Lorchan, Danny Burch - lost to Cole and his Undisputed Era buddies.
Having made sporadic appearances on main roster programming, most notably on the WrestleMania 35 pre-show where he famously got into a heated argument with Michael Cole over Pat's decision to wear tuxedo shorts, McAfee was formally moved up from NXT in April 2021, taking a colour commentator spot alongside Cole on SmackDown. By the following year, he'd make his in-ring main roster debut at WrestleMania 38 in a win over Austin Theory; a win that was immediately followed by an impromptu match against Vince McMahon that ended in defeat for McAfee.
Since then, Pat has picked up wins over Baron Corbin and the Miz, briefly competed in the 2024 men's Royal Rumble, and most recently laced up his boots in a loss to Gunther at WWE Backlash this past May.