Skip to main content
Advertising
Presented by

Wednesday Roundup: The Athletic Features Boye Mafe In Rise To Success In Year 2 

The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar writes about how linebacker Boye Mafe’s game has taken a leap and what Mafe’s keys to success have been.  

round-up11082023

Good morning, 12s. Here's a look at what's out there today — Wednesday, November 8 — about your Seattle Seahawks.

Michael-Shawn Dugar highlights how Boye Mafe's rise in Year 2 might not come to a surprise for those who have watched Mafe since his college career, but Dugar offers insight into why exactly fans have seen a jump.

This year, Mafe has swapped potential for production. Through eight games, he leads the Seahawks with six sacks and has recorded one in each of the last six games, tying a franchise record. Mafe also leads Seattle in quarterback hits (nine) and pressure rate (13.5 percent) among qualifying defenders (all stats provided by TruMedia unless noted otherwise). Mafe's pressure rate ranks 41st out of 184 NFL defenders with at least 100 pass rush snaps. He's third in pass rush win rate (27 percent), according to ESPN, which measures how often a player beats his block within 2.5 seconds. Only Cleveland's Myles Garrett and Dallas' Micah Parsons rank higher.

Mafe's competitiveness to be great can be credited to his upbringing and Dugar pulls back the curtain to explain.

During the 90 minutes of downtime between the team walk-throughs and the start of practice, Mafe can often be found seated in one of four recliners aligned around a gaming table by his locker. Whether playing cards or dominoes, Mafe is usually jawing back and forth with his teammates like family members at a backyard barbecue.

This environment mirrors what Mafe was used to growing up in Golden Valley, Minn., as the youngest of six siblings in an extremely athletic family. His older brother, Dami, and two of his cousins played college football. One of them (Ayo Idowu) had a tryout with the Seahawks in 2013. Boye's sister, Tayo, starred in rugby and played on the U-19 U.S. Women's National Team.

To be a child in his household meant battling to be the best, no matter the activity.

The person Mafe is today — constantly working behind the scenes, asking questions, doing extra film study, trying to perfect the product seen on Sundays — can be traced to his upbringing. The steps he took to make that second-year leap are a product of the principles he picked up from his parents, Nigerian immigrants who came to America in the 1970s.

Social Post Of The Day

Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner eclipsed 1,600 career tackles – the seventh player in NFL history to do so.

Take a look at linebacker Boye Mafe during his time at the University of Minnesota. Mafe was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2nd round, No. 40 overall, in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Related Content

2025 Pro Bowl Voting Is Now Open!

2025 Pro Bowl Voting Is Now Open!

Vote for your favorite Seahawks players to send them to the 2025 Pro Bowl in Orlando, Florida on Sunday, February 2nd.

Advertising