Bill Vinovich will serve as the head referee for the Pittsburgh Steelers Week 16 rematch with the Baltimore Ravens, and the Steelers may have to get used to seeing a lot of yellow as they pursue a division title.
While the league regards Vinovich as one of the better officials in football, his crew hasn’t been afraid to throw some flags, especially in recent weeks. In Week 15, his crew called 22 penalties in the Dallas Cowboys-Carolina Panthers game, and they threw 15 flags in the Week 14 contest between the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers. There have been nine games this season with ten or more total penalties, amounting to 168 penalties called this season, an average of 11.2 per game.
False starts and offensive holding have been the two most common penalties they’ve called, with 39 false start calls and 21 offensive holding calls. The crew has also called defensive pass interference 21 times, so CB Joey Porter Jr. will need to be careful against Baltimore to avoid costing the Steelers yards by getting too grabby.
Vinovich’s crew hasn’t worked a Steelers game yet this season. The most recent game he refereed involving the Steelers was in Week 4 of the 2023 season when he called the Texans’ 30-6 blowout win over Pittsburgh. Home teams are 7-6 in games Vinovich has called this season, and he has worked one game involving the Ravens, a 41-38 win over the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati in Week 5.
Vinovich was born in Beaver County, Pa., but his family moved to Anaheim when he was a child. He graduated from Canyon High School in Anaheim before attending the University of San Diego. He started officiating in the CFL and Arena Football League before doing college games in the Mountain West Conference. He comes from a family of officials, as both his dad and his grandfather on his dad’s side were sports officials.
Vinovich has officiated three Super Bowls, including Super Bowl LVIII, last year between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers. Outside of his career as an official, Vinovich is a certified public accountant.
