From the WWE Rumor Mill: More details on JBL's WWE departure!

What’s the story?

JBL recently announced via Twitter that he would be stepping down from his full-time commentary duties on Smackdown Live, looking to dedicate more time to his charity work as Beyond Sport Global Ambassador. This comes less than six months after his broadcasting partner Mauro Ranallo quit the Smackdown booth amid rumours of bullying by JBL.

The announcement came quite suddenly on Friday, but as per The Dirty Sheets, the plan was put in place by WWE and JBL at the height of the 'JBL bullying' controversy.

In case you didn’t know…

JBL's career goes back over twenty years with WWE and he is known to have a great relationship with WWE owner Vince McMahon. There have been numerous reports this year about JBL's antics and so called 'hazing' of younger talent particularly during his main event run on Smackdown and many were calling for him to be fired from his role, with fans even chanting 'Fire Bradshaw' during WWE broadcasts.

Despite the controversy, JBL was able to retain his job, with WWE even poking fun at the situation on an episode of "Bring it to the Table" with Corey Graves and Pete Rosenberg. The situation looked to have completely blown over until JBL tweeted his announcement on Friday.

The heart of the matter

Following the announcement, The Dirty Sheets' report states that JBL leaving was the plan all along and was put in place during the Ranallo bullying scandal. It was felt that by firing him at the time, it would have given more credence to the bullying accusations and that Vince McMahon himself didn't want to throw JBL under the bus.

Allowing him to stay on for six months after the situation had blown over would allow JBL to leave his full-time duties while still staying on in an ambassadorial role to make appearances at Tribute to the Troops and Wrestlemania, with his credibility still intact.

WWE.com released the following statement on JBL's announcement - "In a tweet posted Friday evening, JBL announced that he is stepping back from his weekly role as SmackDown LIVE announcer to focus on his new role as a Beyond Sport Global Ambassador. The longest-reigning WWE Champion in SmackDown history will continue his more than 20-year relationship with WWE by appearing on events such as WrestleMania and WWE Tribute to the Troops – which JBL inspired in 2003."

What’s next?

JBL's departure from the Smackdown Live broadcasting team means Raw colour commentator Corey Graves will now represent both brands on the announce table. Graves was already working Tuesday nights on 205 Live so it's an easy fit to add him to the Smackdown team.

JBL's departure in this timely manner means he is likely to be welcomed back with open arms by the fans in any future appearances for WWE.

Author’s take

The JBL bullying story was one of the biggest stories in the business this year and his departure from WWE full time should now put an end to that. There has been a lot said about the man -- both good and bad, but what you have to remember is that you can't please everyone all of the time. What can't be discounted are his contributions to the company over the last twenty years.

Though his departure is a big loss to the commentary team, he leaves the role in the safe hands of Corey Graves, who has a proven track record of having good chemistry with both Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton.

The three-man team on Smackdown represents the first main roster commentary team made up entirely of this new generation of WWE and they will be hungry to put their stamp on the company in the coming years.