Bengals Player Profile: Boye Mafe is Cincinnati’s next bet on a star pass rusher
Boye Mafe has delivered when granted starting snaps before. He has no one in front of him from turning more pressures into takedowns.
We’re five days away from the Cincinnati Bengals’ preseason finale against the Philadelphia Eagles. Every player on the Bengals’ 90-man roster will have a profile page by the end of the week. Check out previous player profiles here.
The next player of the series was the most expensive free agent signing of Cincinnati’s offseason.
Boye Mafe Player Profile
Age: 27
Year: 5th
Position: Defensive end
College: Minnesota
Jersey Number: 53
Boye Mafe was originally selected No. 40 overall in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks. Prior to the NFL, Mafe spent four years (2018-2021) at Minnesota, and started 14 of the 42 games he played for the Golden Gophers. He earned second-team All-Big Ten honors in 2021 with a team-high 10 tackles for loss and seven sacks.
Mafe came off the bench for Seattle as a rookie and became a full-time starter in 2023. He posted a sack in seven consecutive games that season and posted a team-high 9.5 on the year. The Seahawks unleashed Derick Hall the next season which cut into Mafe’s playing time a bit. The third-year EDGE still logged 11 starts and six sacks. He was reverted back to a rotational player for most of 2025 and only recorded two sacks all season.
Contract details
Mafe signed a three-year, $60,000,000 deal with the Bengals during free agency. His base salary is $7,400,000 this season, and he can earn up to $500,000 in per game roster bonuses throughout the year. He’s already earned an $15,000,000 signing bonus, a $4,000,000 roster bonus, and a $100,000 workout bonus. He’s scheduled to make $27,000,000 in cash this year. His salary cap hit for the season comes out to $17,000,000 due to the signing bonus being prorated over the life of the contract.
Roster outlook
Cincinnati took a chance on Trey Hendrickson five years ago, hoping the former rotational pass rusher would blossom into a dominant starter. The bet paid off, and now another wager has been placed on Mafe.
The Bengals are going to start Mafe opposite of Myles Murphy this year, banking on either one developing into a consistent sack artist. Depth behind them has been enhanced, but the defensive line’s dominance will be heavily determined by whether or not one of the starters takes a leap.
Mafe has delivered when granted starting snaps before. He has no one in front of him from turning more pressures into takedowns.
Roster odds: 100%
