Tampa radio host Dan Sileo (pictured) seemed to cross a major racial line Monday when he called players the Buccaneers were rumored to be pursuing “three monkeys.”
The players in question are Jonathan Vilma, Cortland Finnegan, and Vincent Jackson — three black players.
“Wow, they’re gonna spend all that money,” Sileo said while hosting his morning show on WDAE The Sports Animal.
Sileo’s co-host then razzed him, suggesting Dan was going to end up changing his mind after the Bucs got the players.
“And Dan’ll be like, ‘well, they’re not really that good.'”
But Sileo stood by his opinion, saying “No! No! If they get those three monkeys, I’m good! I’m ready, man. I’m ready. I want those guys. Those guys are great players.”
The audio is below, via Deadspin:
Sileo is a former Miami Hurricanes lineman who played 10 games with the Bucs in 1987. He’s had credibility issues in the past and was suspended in 2009 for claims about the Buccaneers owners.
We have no idea in what possible context his “three monkeys” comment could have been stated to make it benign, because that sounded awful. Recall that Howard Cosell got into trouble for calling Redskins receiver Alvin Garrett “a little monkey” on Monday Night Football in 1983. Cosell said that was an affectionate term he also used for white players, but he still left the booth after the season. We can’t imagine things go much better for Sileo. I’d like to hear his explanation for the comment.
UPDATE: Dan Sileo has been fired.
