Sunday, September 12, 2010

Are You Ready for some Football? Rating Robinson/Plummer and Papa/Flores

It's that time. The NFL is back.

And enjoy it while you can because all evidence points to a work stoppage for the 2011 season, but we'll worry about that next year.

We are blessed in the Bay Area to have two, first-rate broadcast duo's on both sides of the bay; Ted Robinson and Gary Plummer for the 49ers on KNBR, (and 107.7 FM- 'The Bone) and Greg Papa and Tom Flores for the Raiders on KFRC, (and 105.3 FM -"Live 105").

49ERS: Ted Robinson and Gary Plummer--

This is Robinson's second season with the Niners and both he and color analyst, Gary Plummer, work well together and have jelled quite well in only two campaigns.

Robinson is ever steady, ("steady Teddy"?--you betcha) providing just enough excitement and information to make the broadcast work well. His calls are both fluid and informative, and Plummer's astute analysis make for a quality broadcast.

RAIDERS: Greg Papa and Tom Flores--

Papa returns to the booth with color-analyst, Tom Flores. I like Papa'a signature "Touchdownnnnnnn Raiders!" call while others say it sounds a bit exaggerated and over the top; we'll, everyone has a right to their opinion. I'll say this: when the score is lopsided, it does sound a bit contrived, but overall Papa keeps the game flowing and his uncanny ability to recite statistics is a marvel.

Flores has a host of critics who call him a severe homer, but if you put aside that irritation, his commentary and insides are first-rate, which undoubtedly come from his days as a player and coach, and in that area, he excels, (for that matter, Plummer too, although I wish he'd conceal his rather overt anti-Raiders bias.)

**Gary Radnich and Tony Bruno's new Comcast SportsNet California show debuts tonight at 9 PM. It'll be interesting to see if the dynamic duo can duplicate their radio inertia on cable. I have little doubt the show can be a winner, but competing against the  back end of the NBC Sunday night game and local NBC Bay Area post-game, (hosted by Raj Mathai) show will be tough going.

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3 comments:

  1. Man,I could post a book on this-but wont.Spare you. Papa's TD is so Bill King like,its like his ghost voice. My only complaint isnt he homers for Al Davis..Al's earned it. It was the three awful years he lied about Russell's horrid play as Greg blamed everybody-the line,receivers,weather,blah,blah,except Russell.
    Ted Robinson is an improvement over not enough prozac Joe Starkey.If the niners were behind in the early fourth quarter? he pronounced them as having lost!..of,course they would win-sometimes. Bugged the heck out of me for the home announcer to be a quitter.
    Robinson? eh,he's just ok.

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  2. Also,maybe Rich you could find more about the weekend tweets of Tim Kawamaki calling down KNBR and Comcast for their biased Warrior reports,game calling,post game show. It even got a hostile response from Matt Steinmetz who called Kawakami "A vindictive critic". And yes,Fitz will return as PBP. So far Lacob has been status quo almost all the way down the line..

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  3. Flores is the Ray Fosse of football broadcasting, a sorry homer and bore. Probably have the same toupee supplier as well.
    Rich, to call the Bay Area "blessed" to have Tom Flores as an announcer shows your bias.

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