Eagles

Does 94 WIP Even Need a Sideline Reporter for Eagles Broadcasts?

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Aug 11th, 2026 · 2:21 PM EDT

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Rob Tornoe at the Inquirer reports that WIP won’t replace Devan Kaney on the Eagles sidelines, sort of:

…94.1 WIP won’t have a dedicated sideline reporter during Eagles games for the first time in more than 15 years.

WIP is shifting to a more limited role within the broadcast, with (Merrill) Reese and (Mike) Quick turning to another WIP personality when needed.

It’s assumed Eliot Shorr-Parks, the station’s Eagles beat reporter since 2018, will be the broadcast’s go-to voice for updates, but others could jump in as needed. Shorr-Parks will do a pregame hit from the sideline ahead of Saturday’s preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens.

So here’s the question –

Does WIP even need a sideline reporter?

Or, rephrased –

What does a sideline reporter provide to the radio broadcast?

You would probably say, ‘well, this individual sees things at field level that we don’t see.‘ They convey this information to the listener, who now has a better understanding of what’s going on, for instance, player X has entered the blue medical tent. Then player Y gets his ankle examined by a trainer while player Z throws a clipboard in disgust. These are all helpful things that add context to the viewing experience.

Thing is, we now have a lot of people sharing this information. There are 50 beat reporters in the press box telling us who is going in and out of the blue medical tent. Pam Oliver, or whomever, is on the sideline for the TV broadcast, and her reporting reverberates quickly through social media. There’s also information passed from Eagles PR into the press box for dissemination.

The other thing the sideline reporter does is grab field-level audio and/or conduct field-level interviews. This is as good as access gets, so if you have someone who is savvy in this department, you’re going to come out of it with great sound and video immediately after a game. The halftime interview is absolutely useless, just straight garbage, but that postgame stuff really holds value, for instance, the insiders getting video of the fans falling into the tunnel a few years back and almost squashing Jalen Hurts:

#Eagles QB Jalen Hurts was sacked only once during today’s game. Almost had a second on his way to the locker room. pic.twitter.com/WwBE5pXaxO

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) January 2, 2022

From WIP’s perspective, if Eliot is already down there, you can have him be the correspondent for the radio broadcast. Otherwise what? He just sits behind the annoying glass in the press box? You might as well use the personnel and the resources that are already available. Leverage your access as a rights holder. WIP is a football station masquerading as sports talk radio anyway, so it’s not like they’re low on strategic options come September. They’re an Eagles broadcast partner and always do a good job getting the most out of that relationship.

Note that Devan Kaney was on staff and had a role on the WIP morning show. Howard Eskin anchored radio shows while also being the obnoxious fur coat sideline guy. WIP has never had a dedicated sideline reporter who ONLY does that, so it’s not like consolidation is some departure for them. At surface level, it looks like they’re just saving some money, but Kaney was a layoff and wasn’t going to be replaced on A.M. drive. Therefore, the sideline news shouldn’t be that surprising, should it?

We’ll see how it all plays out, but this doesn’t seem much different than what the Phillies and NBCSP did with Taryn Hatcher. She’s not out in the field on a daily basis at home games now, but they’ve used Spencer McKercher and Cole Weintraub in spots. Likewise, WIP will still have people reporting outside of the broadcast booth at Eagles games, but it’s going to come in a different form now.