Earlier this week, Bay Area football fans were stunned to learn that longtime Raiders radio announcer Greg Papa was not being brought back to call the team’s final season in Oakland. The organization signed Brent Musburger to a three year deal to become the team’s new radio voice. Brent will work the final season in the Bay Area, and the team’s first two seasons in Las Vegas.
But Papa wasn’t the only one to receive grim news.
As it turns out, Papa’s longtime color analyst and former Raiders head coach and Super Bowl champion Tom Flores has also been informed he won’t be retained. Flores told the Fresno Bee that he had hoped to stay on thru the first season in Las Vegas but the franchise has decided to explore a new direction.
“In 20 years, I usually sign a contract right about this time — at least a week or two before the first game,” Flores told the Bee. “It wasn’t new when I didn’t hear from them. When they let Papa go, I was: ‘We’ll see what happens. Maybe I’m next.’ And here I am.”
No word has been given yet about the status of Raiders sideline analyst Lincoln Kennedy. Given his talent, contributions to the broadcast, and proximity to Las Vegas (Lincoln resides in Arizona), it’d make sense for the franchise to move him upstairs to the analyst booth filling Flores’ seat. Time will tell if that’s the organization’s plan.
Jason Barrett is the Founder and CEO of Barrett Media. The company launched in September 2015 and has provided consulting services to America’s top audio and video brands, while simultaneously covering the media industry at BarrettMedia.com, becoming a daily destination for media professionals. Prior to Barrett Media, Jason built and programmed 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He was also the first sports programmer for SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, which later became 97.5 The Fanatic. Barrett also led 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY, and worked on-air and behind the scenes at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years at ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT producing ‘The Dan Patrick Show’ and ‘GameNight’. JB can be reached on Twitter @SportsRadioPD or by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
