Report: Backstage News On Pat McAfee's WWE Return

The Royal Rumble is always a night chock full of surprises, and the 2023 edition was no different, kicking off with the return of Pat McAfee to the WWE announce team.

McAfee made his grand return at the start of the Rumble show, joining Corey Graves and Michael Cole at the desk, to the bemusement of Graves and the surprise of Cole. A new report from PWInsider has revealed that Cole’s surprise was legitimate, as McAfee’s return was kept very quiet in order to prevent leaks.

The report continues, suggesting that the majority of the production were not clued into McAfee’s return, hence the quick scramble to get him a headset and chair as he joined commentary. Furthermore, Cole and Graves allegedly prepped to call the entire Rumble show as a duo, so their reactions were in fact 100% genuine.

There is no word yet on if this was just a one-off or if McAfee is set to return to the SmackDown announce team going forward. McAfee is under a multi-year WWE deal, but went on hiatus in September 2022 to focus on the college football season.