The Gloves are Reportedly Off When it Comes to the Pat McAfee Situation

It is officially WrestleMania week for WWE, and you can expect nearly every superstar in the locker room to fulfill some type of media obligation ahead of the show this Saturday and Sunday.

Women's Intercontinental Champion AJ Lee, for example, spoke to The Takedown on SI to preview her return to the 'Showcase of the Immortals' for the first time in 11 years, and while Pat McAfee did not come up during our conversation, you can expect his name to pop up quite a bit over the next few days.

Why? Well, apparently, WWE is going to allow talent to express how they really feel about his sudden and controversial return to the company. Whether they are on board with it or not.

WWE has no restrictions in place in regard to discussing Pat McAfee

"GO. HOME. PAT."@CodyRhodes made it very clear how he feels about @PatMcAfeeShow. 😬 pic.twitter.com/nWfZRAdPm0
— WWE (@WWE) April 11, 2026

"Based on what we've heard, there are no restrictions on talent expressing displeasure in media about the Pat McAfee angle or comments," Sean Ross Sapp noted on Fightful Select Monday.

The popular, or maybe not as popular now, ESPN personality was injected into the middle of the WWE Championship program between Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton, a directive that reportedly came from TKO management to promote synergy with their media partner and boost ticket sales for WrestleMania.

McAfee has now taken on a new heel persona and has been openly trashing WWE creative and talent during reportedly unscripted promos. This has prompted on-air rebuttals from both Cody Rhodes and CM Punk so far.

Former World Heavyweight Champion and one-half of the current World Tag Team Champions, Damian Priest, then made some headlines over the weekend when he unloaded on the McAfee situation during an appearance on the Gabby AF Show.

Priest admitted that some people may not like what he had to say, but he was apparently relaying shared sentiments from inside the WWE locker room.

"A lot of us weren't happy. And that's real," Priest said. "I thought it was bull. We're a PG show, right? But he could come in, and he could throw F bombs and say whatever he wants. For me, that's like one of those things that so many other talents, even from one word, could benefit... Not gonna lie, it kind of pissed me off."

“It sucks…”

I sit down with @ArcherOfInfamy on a new #GabbyAF & he weighs in on @PatMcAfeeShow & @RandyOrton 👀#Smackdown
Full episode drops at 4p ET 🎙️
Watch & subscribe on YT: https://t.co/Hc6ychiyra
+ listen wherever you get your podcasts 🎧 pic.twitter.com/Ug4g93n0Kx
— Gabby LaSpisa (@GabLaSpisa) April 10, 2026

On Monday, Cody Rhodes continued to express his displeasure over McAfee's intrusion into a program that could, and arguably should, have been centered around the legitimate 20-year history between himself and Randy Orton. He said someone in Pat's inner circle needs to start telling him when to say "no" to certain offers.

Again, you can expect many more headlines about the former NFL punter this week. Because with the gloves off, members of the media will most assuredly pounce on the hot topic.

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