On April 16th, 2021, WWE announced that Pat McAfee had been moved to SmackDown from NXT, serving as color commentator alongside Michael Cole as a babyface.
Pat McAfee had been away from WWE television due to his NFL obligations. Michael Cole and Wade Barrett have been working as part of the commentary team on Friday Night Smackdown till then.
After the Royal Rumble, further information was disclosed about Pat McAfee’s comeback. As reported by Fightful, none of the commentators were aware of McAfee’s return ahead of time, and he arrived at the Alamodome only thirty minutes before his live TV appearance.
The report also stated that there was no official confirmation on whether Pat McAfee was returning to the SmackDown commentary booth full-time. We will have to see when he returns, if he ever has the time. It is doubtful McAfee will be returning anytime soon and fans will just have to accept that. Regardless, he is likely to return sooner rather than later.
