Backstage News On Kevin Patrick's Removal From WWE SmackDown

Friday Night SmackDown will have a new lead announcer this week following reports that Kevin Patrick has been removed from his role as the play-by-play commentator on the blue brand. It was noted in recent weeks that Patrick needed to step up after SmackDown returned to being a two-man booth at the start of 2024 and the feeling within WWE was that Patrick on commentary "just wasn't working out." 

Mike Johnson of PWInsider has reported that WWE executives decided to remove Patrick from his lead announcer position on Monday night and it was a last-minute decision. Patrick was actually scheduled to travel to SmackDown for Friday night's episode. 

Johnson noted that "while Patrick was liked personally, there had been a feeling for some time that he was not the right person for the role." If Patrick will be given another role in WWE is unknown as of the time of writing. 

Patrick has been with WWE since 2021. He became a play-by-play announcer in October 2022, first on Raw. He briefly transitioned to colour commentary in the Summer of 2023 after being moved to SmackDown as part of a three-man booth with Corey Graves and Michael Cole with the idea that Cole could help with Patrick's development. 

Beyond WWE, Patrick provides commentary for the MLS on Apple TV under his real name, Kevin Egan.