Wednesday, May 23, 2018

Papa is a Raiders' Broadcast Lifer; Update: Papa and Mark Davis Feud

Image result for Greg Papa Raiders I'M NOT HERE to defend nor praise Raiders/NBC Cable broadcaster, Greg Papa--he can do that himself--but information put forth by Tim Kawakami via a tweet is pure BS.

I know 100 percent.

Kawakami, sports writer for The Athletic wanted to stir up shit and he did but it was all fake. He inferred that Papa was interested in a possible 49ers role as broadcaster. Those weren't his exact words but essentially that Papa was auditioning for a gig.

BS.

Papa had a special relationship with the late Raiders' owner, Al Davis. Maybe too special but that's not the point of this post.

Davis loved Papa and his broadcast and so much so that he in essence, made it in contract form that Papa was to be the Raiders broadcaster a lifetime job. How do I know? Because I know, trust me. And that includes wherever the Raiders play, like, say, Las Vegas.

Papa isn't interested in any 49ers job; a. Ted Robinson isn't going anywhere and does a great job for the Niners. Plus, he's under contract and has the backing of the 49ers' broadcast hierarchy. It's fact.

Kawakami writes and post, sometimes, interesting copy. I can dislike the guy ...as I do, and still read him but he's notorious for BLOCKING people on social media he disagrees with; I've been accused of the same, but I try to be fair. Kawakami is anything but plus he's inconsistent.

I wanted you to get the facts.

UPDATED; Papa and Mark Davis have an ongoing feud probably fueling the rumors of Papa's "interest" in the 49ers --which again, isn't relevant.

During Al Davis' late stages in life (he died in 2011) as indicated, Papa became real close to Davis, so much so that Davis gave Greg a lifetime position in the Raiders organization. So close were they, there was rumors that Papa was not only considered merely for broadcast duties, but on the field as well, indicating Davis' trust and respect for Papa's knowledge of football. It hasn't materialized that way and I doubt Papa would involve himself with the new Jon Gruden regime but so went the story.

This is a true story: Mark Davis, Al' son and the current managing partner, is not a Papa fan. And Papa, like anyone who's someone in the football and PR world, can't stand Mark Davis.

Davis is a novice owner; a bumbling, idiotic misfit who got to his position because his dad left his portion of ownership to his son. The fact his son knows nothing about football and comes across as goofy and aloof is no accident; and quietly, Papa told friends as much. In addition, Papa, on his radio show and elsewhere made critical statements on the Raiders' leadership. They were fairly benign but Davis was displeased and got into Papa's face on several occasions.

Papa talks about the 49ers on his radio show --a lot lately--some people who should know better interpret that as his (Papa) wanting to curry favor with the 49ers in case his Raiders' gig peters out; that won't happen unless Papa changes his mind and wants no part of Las Vegas but he's already indicated his intention to still broadcast Raiders' games (It's only an hour flight from the Bay Area so Papa can still do his other duties)

Papa's got an ironclad agreement that Davis bequeathed to him; how firm is it? He's still working there, right? And here's a biggie: Papa and Jon Gruden, the new coach and de facto boss of the Silver and Black, is a Papa fan and they're both close friends dating back to Gruden's first rodeo with the Raiders years back. Gruden has already told Mark to back off Papa. In a diplomatic manner but there's an unbreakable bond there and it ain't disappearing anytime soon.

The only person who can ace out Papa from the Raiders is Papa himself; he'd have to change his mind though and I don't see that happening for now. The money he gets from the Raiders is pretty darn good (high six-figures) and Papa does need the money now, trust me.

And know you know...the rest of the story.

15 comments:

  1. Gig doesn't necessarily mean play-by-play. Remember Papa used to do the A's games and somehow wound up as a Giants studio host. Think a little broader Rich. Papa is no fool. He might not be auditioning for any job right now, but he wants his options open. Tim's speculation isn't as crazy as you think. He's not going to LV, so what else could he do? Any why is he defending the 49ers or talking so much about the 49ers so much on his radio show? Connect the dots...

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  2. Papa needs !! Angela is taking half.

    Reason: Greg sniffing around KJ too much!

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  3. Still awaiting the explanation between the late Al's regard for Papa and Mark's current not-so-regard for Papa.

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    1. 11:48: You ask and Rich delivers. At least Mark is the son of a late owner whose franchise won 3 Super Bowls. The Bidwills are still bumbling for almost 100 years atop the Arizona Cardinals with just 2 championships (1 in a controversial ranking in 1925, the other in 1947 atop the NFL, but the Otto Graham AAFC Cleveland Browns would have smacked them). And Mike Brown is nowhere near his late father Paul as far as football minds go in Cincinnati - I remember when great writer who just moved from SI to NBC full-time Peter King mentioned that all of Southern Ohio tried to get Mike Brown to sell the Bengals, both sides knowing full well that the younger Brown clearly doesn't know how to field a winning franchise. Of course, that went over like a led balloon. One of the NFL slogans is "Football Is Family". Well, the league and its teams' local stations are so dysfunctional they make The Simpsons seem normal.
      NFL Football and Bay Media - both dropping in quality, except for a few spots here and there. Chucky's middle man moments between Papa and Mark Davis should be interesting. Papa should be thankful that Mark worships Jon Gruden enough to let this go.

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  4. Possible Papa might be the new studio host for the pre and post game of 49er games on NBC Sports Bay Area once the Raiders leave for Vegas...

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  5. Rich's comments about Mark Davis are consistent with my impressions over the years.

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  6. Papa talks more 49ers than Raiders because management tells him to. Same reason there's more talk about the Giants than the A's. Everything on 95.7 is SF focused and has been for 7 years.

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    1. The Giants and the Niners move the needle moreso than the A's and the Raiders, even though they talk quite a bit of Raiders during football season.

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  7. I have my inside sources at the Raiders organization. This "lifetime" deal was merely an oral wish bestowed by Al--that Greg remain a Raider for Life.

    But my source--he's been w/the Raiders for a long time--says there was no real legal offer made...and that Mark Davis knows this...and would not stand in the way if Papa wants to leave the organization. Davis would love to go after some "national voices" to replace Papa...and my source says Davis has already been asking around about certain big-time PBP voices. And my source says interest in the rumored vacant PBP slot is huge due to the draw of living in Vegas.

    Papa, on the other hand, loves the Bay Area, and while he loves visiting Vegas for a few days, he would not want to live there. He has too many family ties/situations tying him to the Bay Area.

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  8. "he's notorious for BLOCKING people on social media he disagrees with; I've been accused of the same"

    Rich, it's not that you've been "accused" of blocking people on social media that disagree with you. You HAVE blocked people on social media that disagreed with you. I was one of them. It's not an accusation if it's true. What your post should read is "he's notorious for BLOCKING people on social media he disagrees with; I've done the same"

    I don't care if anyone blocks me. It's their account to use as they please. But there's no reason to lie about it. Just own the fact that your skin is nearly as thin as TK's. At least it would lend credibility to your hypocrisy.

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  9. Regarding Greg Papa, can't really imagine him coming over to call Niners games on the radio, after calling Raider games on the radio for so many years. I agree with Rich that Greg Papa is a Raider. In a way, he's one of the first people you think about when you think of the Raiders. Ice Cube even mentioned Greg Papa in one of the Raiders rap songs that he did.

    Now with that being said, anything is possible. Never thought Richard Sherman would be a Niner, and now he is a Niner.... I agree that it all probably depends on Greg Papa. Vegas is only a 1 hr flight away as was mentioned, and he could probably still be back in the Bay Area in time to host his radio show on 95.7 and do his Warriors and Happy Hour duties on NBC Sports Bay Area.

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  10. With that being said, let's just say Greg Papa decided to leave the Raiders and come to the Niners, what would happen to Ted Robinson? Would he be willing to give up his Niners job to Greg Papa? I would assume not, but I wonder if Dave Flemming decided to leave the Giants to call games on ESPN full-time, then that would leave an opening for Ted Robinson to come back to the Giants to call games on the radio.

    I doubt that happens as Dave Flemming has mentioned that he plans on staying with the Giants (at least for now), but it would seem like other dominoes would have to fall in order for Greg Papa to come over to the Niners.

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  11. Thanks Rich for letting us know about this situation. Kind of surprising that Mark Davis doesn't like Greg Papa, but Greg Papa has a great friendship with Gruden as you said, and as he mentioned on the air, and like was mentioned earlier, that will probably outweigh/overrule whatever feud Greg Papa and Mark Davis have.

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  12. If Greg Papa does end up leaving the Raiders when they move to Vegas, I can see him probably calling some college football games to compensate. Maybe call some games on Pac-12 Network?

    If not that, then I could see him probably calling some games on NBC Sports Bay Area for the Giants on those series when Duane Kuiper needs a breather/is "on assignment", or maybe even calling some A's games on NBC Sports California if the A's want to bring him back for a few series during the year.

    But yes, if Greg Papa does leave the Raiders, he could have other options.

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  13. Let him go, I'm tired of Papa anyway...

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