Carl Cheffers will serve as the head referee for Sunday’s AFC Wild Card matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills. The NFL announced its playoff assignments a short time ago, Cheffers getting the nod for the Sunday afternoon game.
Cheffers has worked in the NFL since 2000, first as a side judge before becoming an official in 2008. Since, he’s served as head referee for two Super Bowls, the New England Patriots’ 28-3 comeback win over the Atlanta Falcons and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Super Bowl LV win over the Kansas City Chiefs, 31-9.
Per Pro Football Reference, Cheffers and his crew called slightly fewer penalties per game than the league average this season. But the home team won at a slightly higher clip, too. Buffalo will be hosting Pittsburgh this weekend.
Cheffers has worked one Steelers game this season, the team’s Week Five 17-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens. Penalty flags were minimal on the day, Pittsburgh penalized three times for 30 yards, Baltimore twice for 20 yards. One of the fouls on the Steelers was T.J. Watt ripping off his helmet after a game-clinching sack of Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, an obvious foul but one that didn’t impact the game.
Cheffers has called one Buffalo game this year. And it became one remembered for a penalty. He was the lead official for the Bills’ win over the Kansas City Chiefs this season, a game where the Chiefs appeared to take a late lead that was negated by an offsides call on WR Ka’Darius Toney, who aligned ahead of the line of scrimmage. It wiped out a touchdown, TE Travis Kelce lateralling the ball back to Toney, and the Bills held on for the win. It was the right call but many fans felt frustrated by the touchdown being taken off the board in such a critical moment.
Controversial referee Brad Allen isn’t scheduled to be the head referee for any game this weekend. He became the NFL’s top story over an eligible lineman controversy in a primetime game between the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions in Week 17, negating a two-point conversion completion to OT Taylor Decker that gave the Lions the lead. Dallas ultimately won the game. Allen served as the head ref for Saturday’s Steelers-Ravens game, a contest that went without much referee impact. The NFL typically “punishes” its referees through a lack of playoff assignments, selecting the crews with the highest grades throughout the season.
