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Fans of WWE commentator Pat McAfee were left confused and worried earlier this year when the popular co-host of WWE Raw was absent from an episode of the weekly television program.
Viewers were told by co-host Michael Cole during the June 24 episode that McAfee would be skipping that day’s episode, which was questionable since McAfee had appeared fine on-air in the weeks prior, and there was no mention of his imminent departure.
Cole assured audiences of WWE Raw, also known as Monday Night Raw, to not “read too much into” McAfee’s absence and PWTorch reported that the co-host had skipped the episode to deal with a “legitimate, last-minute family emergency.”
We have since learned from McAfee himself exactly what that emergency was.
What happened to Pat McAfee?
Addressing the situation on his self-titled The Pat McAfee Show one day after missing WWE Raw, McAfee revealed that his absence was due to an unexpected death in his family, which happened just hours after he had filmed the previous day’s episode.
The commentator revealed that his father-in-law, Bob, had been in the hospital for some time fighting an infection before his death, but that doctors had assured the family his health was under control. “we were told that he was probably going to be discharged,” McAfee recalled, adding that medical professionals had told him Bob “was going to be OK.”
“We all had high hopes and incredible optimism,” he said of his father-in-law’s health. Then, just as he had finished taping an episode of WWE Raw, McAfee received a call from his wife, Samantha, who informed him that Bob’s condition had rapidly worsened, and that he had to “get to the hospital because there had been an emergency.”
A short time after arriving at the hospital alongside his wife, her mother, and her aunt, Bob unfortunately passed away. Thankfully, both McAfee and his loved ones found some solace in being able to speak to Bob before his passing. McAfee said the “wildly devastating” ordeal was especially tough for Samantha, who he described as a “daddy’s girl”, and said it was a reminder for others to “tell your people you love them.”
“You literally have no idea what’s gonna come,” he added. “It can literally be the last time you see somebody any time you see them.” McAfee and Samantha have been married since 2020 and have one child together, daughter Mackenzie Lynn McAfee.
McAfee has since returned to hosting duties on WWE Raw, where he serves as the color commentator alongside Cole as the play-by-play commentator.