Pat McAfee found out about Sasha Banks, Naomi suspensions the same time the rest of us did

Pat McAfee said his look of surprise when suspensions for Sasha Banks and Naomi were announced was due to his not knowing ahead of time.

Just because he’s the excitable color commentator on SmackDown doesn’t mean Pat McAfee knows any more about the Sasha Banks-Naomi situation in WWE than everyone watching at home.

McAfee’s look of surprise when Michael Cole addressed Banks and Naomi’s now famous Raw walkout live on the air on the most recent episode of SmackDown has been the topic of extensive online discussion. As it turns out, there was a good reason for it: McAfee didn’t know the former tag team champions were being suspended until he heard Cole say it.

He admitted as much during his own SiriusXM and YouTube show, The Pat McAfee Show, earlier today.

“The Sasha and Naomi thing? That was my first time hearing what Cole was saying live there,” McAfee said on the show. “I have no idea what to think there. I have no clue.

“I honestly have no idea what to believe in this whole thing. They keep me out of the loop with everything. I have no f—ing idea. While Cole was doing his thing, I was very fascinated. Like, what is going on? I wish I had more answers for people, but it’s like I feel like you (fans) know more than I do.”

While it might be surprising to hear McAfee sound so in the dark about one of the biggest WWE stories in recent memory, even Cole, the voice of the company, has stated that he doesn’t know every single thing that goes down ahead of time during a live show. For something as fluid as the Banks-Naomi walkout, it’s easy to imagine that something like the public declaration of their suspensions would be kept on a “need to know” basis.

McAfee is also in a tough spot when it comes to situations like this, as he is the enthusiastic everyman during WWE broadcasts, and as someone still relatively new to the wrestling business, hasn’t been through anything like this in the past. It will be interesting to see how he reacts to future developments, because he’s almost certain to give his honest take on them, even if it’s not on TV on Friday nights.