"He’s not gonna be there" - Pat McAfee could be leaving WWE completely amid his current absence, claims expert

Pat McAfee has continued to be absent from WWE's programming in recent weeks, raising doubts about his future as a commentator on RAW. Now, wrestling veteran Dave Meltzer has chimed in on the situation, saying McAfee might not be sticking around with the Stamford-based promotion in the long run.

The former NFL star not only works for WWE but also hosts a wildly popular show of his own, The Pat McAfee Show, which airs on ESPN. Owing to his commitments, the 38-year-old star takes frequent breaks from RAW.

Over the last few weeks, Corey Graves has taken over the role of color commentator alongside Michael Cole on the red brand. Though Cole has reiterated on commentary that McAfee will be back, Dave Meltzer claimed on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio that the situation could be different.

Meltzer believes that Pat McAfee is too busy and that the money he's making from his deal with ESPN is far ahead of what he's making in WWE.

"The reality is the guys just too fricking busy. I heard he’s gonna be doing the Home Run Derby, which means he won’t be on [Raw] next week because Home Run Derby’s Monday night in Atlanta. So he’s not gonna be there, I don’t think, I mean Home Run Derby’s head-to-head with Raw. When he comes back, he comes back. I don’t know, he’s got a young kid, he makes 17, 18 million dollars a year from the show that he does. WWE isn’t paying him a fraction of that," said Dave Meltzer.

The noted insider added that after a point, Pat McAfee might realize it isn't feasible for him to work in WWE and could leave the company altogether.

"There comes a point where, why kill yourself? I know he loves doing it, and that’s why he’s been doing it; he loves being around it. The fact that he’s been gone tells you the schedule has been really tough on him. Let’s see if he comes back. And if he comes back, let’s say, in 2 weeks, he’s gotta go again in September anyway.I know he likes to do it, obviously, they like the association with him. I just think it really probably isn’t feasible for him," said Meltzer. [H/T TJR Wrestling]

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Pat McAfee addressed his WWE absence

A couple of weeks ago, Pat McAfee spoke about taking time off from the Stamford-based promotion. The popular star explained that he was exhausted and that he had decided to step away for a while to reenergize himself before returning.

"I will not be commentating. Continuing to just like kinda catch up on life as a whole. You know, Post-Money in the Bank, Pre-Night of Champions. Feels like a good time. I was getting pretty exhausted there. So, shoutout to everybody in WWE looking out for me, too. Very very thankful," McAfee said.

As we inch closer to SummerSlam 2025, it remains to be seen if Pat McAfee manages to return in time for the marquee premium live event.