Referee Report: Bengals Have .682 Winning Percentage with Referee Assigned to Sunday's Season Opener

CINCINNATI – The Cincinnati Bengals won’t have to deal with referee Ron Torbert two years in a row in Cleveland.

The referee for Sunday’s season opener and 104th renewal of the Battle of Ohio at Huntington Bank Field will be Adrian Hill.

Hill has been an NFL official since 2010 and was promoted to head referee in 2019.

He earned playoff assignments in 2022 and 2023, working Wild-Card rounds both seasons.

Hill and his crew averaged 16.3 flags per game last year, which was the fifth most in the league.

That number was up from 2023, when Hill’s crew averaged 13.5 flags per game, which ranked eighth.

The Bengals are 7-3-1 in games with Hill as the head referee, including a win against the Minnesota Vikings in the 2021 season opener and a pair of wins last year.

One of the more memorable – or forgettable, as the case may be – Bengals games Hill has worked was the Thursday night loss in Baltimore in 2023 when Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury.

At the other end of the spectrum was the overtime thriller and walk-off winner in the 2024 home finale against Denver.

Here is the full list of Bengals games Hill has worked as the head referee:

Week 17, 2019: Bengals 33, Browns 23

Bengals three penalties for 20 yards; Browns 4-33

Week 3, 2020: Bengals 23, Eagles 23

Bengals 9-73; Eagles 11-93

Week 10, 2020: Steelers 36, Bengals 10

Bengals 6-65; Steelers 6-45

Week 1, 2021: Bengals 27, Vikings 24 (OT)

Bengals 3-15; Vikings 12-116

Week 15, 2021: Bengals 15, Broncos 10

Bengals 6-38; Broncos 6-60

Week 15, 2022: Bengals 34, Buccaneers 23

Bengals 4-27; Buccaneers 7-58

Week 6, 2023: Bengals 17, Seahawks 13

Bengals 5-43; Seahawks 7-64

Week 11, 2023: Ravens 34, Bengals 20

Bengals 9-78; Ravens 9-110

Week 4, 2024: Bengals 34, Panthers 24

Bengals 5-39; Panthers 6-37

Week 17, 2024: Bengals 30, Broncos 24 (OT)

Bengals 3-15; Broncos 7-35