Bengals’ Katie Blackburn 1st woman on competition committee

NEW YORK (AP) — Cincinnati Bengals executive Katie Blackburn has become the first woman appointed to the NFL’s powerful competition committee, which plays a major role in rules changes. Blackburn, the executive vice president of the Bengals, is the franchise’s fourth member of the committee. Team founder Paul Brown, his son and current owner Mike Brown, and former Bengals coach Marvin Lewis also have served on the group that makes recommendations on rules and points of emphasis to the 32 club owners. The committee also is involved in revisions to league bylaws.