Referee Report: Among Active White Hats, Sunday's Has Worked More Bengals Games Than Any

No active NFL referee has called more Cincinnati Bengals games than the man who will be on the assignment in Week 10 against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football.

This will be Clete Blakeman’s 18th Bengals game since he became a head referee in 2010.

While Cincinnati is 8-9 with Blakeman on the call, the team has a three-game losing streak with the veteran referee, with all three games being memorable losses.

The most recent was last year in Week 9, the 47-42 loss to the Chicago Bears. Prior to that was the Thursday night game at Baltimore in 2024 when quarterback Joe Burrow was hit in the head with no penalty called on a two-point conversion attempt that would have won the game. Instead, the Ravens prevailed 35-34.

And in 2023, Blakeman worked the season opener in Cleveland when the Bengals couldn’t master the Browns or the rain and dropped a 24-3 decision.

Blakeman also worked the 2021 Divisional Round playoff win against the Tennessee Titans.

Bengals Have 3-Game Losing Streak with Clete Blakeman

This will be his fourth career Bengals-Steelers game and first since Cincinnati won 24-10 in Pittsburgh in Week 3 in 2021.

This year, Blakeman and his crew rank fifth with 15.75 accepted penalties per game. Last year he was seventh (12.82).

Blakeman and his crew are tied for first with six roughing the passer penalties this season. Their 11 defensive holding penalties also are tied for most in the league.

The crew has had at least 16 accepted penalties in five of the last six games.

Blakeman has earned postseason assignments in 12 of his 16 seasons as a referee, including Super 50 in 2015, the AFC Championship Game last year and the 2023 NFC Championship Game.

Here are all the Bengals games Blakeman has worked as a head referee:

Week 10, 2024: Ravens 35, Bengals 34

Bengals 3-23; Ravens 11-81

Week 1, 2023: Browns 24, Bengals 3

Bengals 4-20; Browns 5-43

Week 6, 2022: Bengals 35, Falcons 17

Bengals 5-17; Falcons 3-22

Divisional Round, 2021: Bengals 19, Titans 16

Bengals 6-46; Titans 2-15

Week 16, 2021: Bengals 41, Ravens 21

Bengals 5-45; Ravens 6-27

Week 3, 2021: Bengals 24, Steelers 10

Bengals 10-89; Steelers 10-73

Week 3, 2019: Bills 21, Bengals 17

Bengals 8-54; Bills 7-55

Week 5, 2018: Steelers 28, Bengals 21

Bengals 6-30; Steelers 9-69

Week 2, 2017: Texans 13, Bengals 9

Bengals 7-45; Texans 9-61

Week 12, 2016: Ravens 19, Bengals 14

Bengals 2-15; Ravens 8-69

Week 12, 2016: Ravens 19, Bengals 14

Bengals 2-15; Ravens 8-69

Week 1, 2016: Bengals 23, Jets 22

Bengals 5-44; Jets 7-95

Week 6, 2015: Bengals 34, Bills 21

Bengals 3-20; Bills 8-93

Week 8, 2014: Bengals 27, Ravens 24

Bengals 6-40; Ravens 7-51

Week 8, 2014: Bengals 27, Ravens 24

Bengals 6-40; Ravens 7-51

Week 3, 2013: Bengals 34, Packers 30

Bengals 5-43; Packers 4-55

Week 7, 2012: Steelers 24, Bengals 17

Steelers 5-50; Bengals 2-20

Wild-Card Round, 2011: Texans 31, Bengals 10

Texans 5-87; Bengals 3-25

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