Boye Mafe has been a force at defensive end in his first season as a Bengal. He sat down with Bengals.com senior writer Geoff Hobson this week to talk about the influence of his parents' home of Nigeria, how his late mother gave him his personality and how he's not Trey Hendrickson but Boye Mafe.

He says he's "Just a guy," but he's a lot more than that. He sees sacks as an art form, likes his music to match the march to Sunday complete with a game-day crescendo, and brings an edgy underdog story to the edge.

The Conversation

GH: You look comfortable as a Bengal. Violent in the run game, productive with pressures, emerging as a leader in the defensive line room.  How do you think the first five games have gone?

BM: It's been good so far. Obviously, there's more on the tape, more to do. I feel like for me, it's trying to maximize what ways I can get better and what ways I can do more. trusting my coaches and figuring out what positions and what roles I can be in. For me, it is what is asked of me and what I can do to try to do that every Sunday.

GH: How has your role evolved over the five games, particularly in the run game?

BM: Here and there. For me, it's just what we need. We've got to win the game. It's cool if you play well, but if you play well on losing teams, what does that do for you? At the end of the day, I want to win. Whatever we can do to win the game, whatever we can do to make it better, whatever that looks like. It's not about me. It's more about the whole picture.

GH: I know your dad has been a big influence on you. Has he been able to get to any games?

BM: He travels, but he comes when he can. He finds his way when he can.

GH: He goes back to Nigeria frequently. Is that for business?

BM: Business. Leisure or whatever, whatever calls him over there.

GH: Where in Nigeria is home?

BM: He lives in Lagos now, but he was born in the north.

GH: After you spent a year in middle school there, you've also made sure to get back often. You were just over there for your dad's birthday in July. What was that like?

BM: I always love going back to Nigeria. It feels welcoming. It's like home. And just being in that environment is one of those moments that reassures you, and just kind of gives you that, like, yeah, this is my heritage, this is where I come from, these are my people.

GH: Was that perfect to do in July when you were coming here for a new start in the league?

BM: Giving me a little fresh. It worked out for me, and I think it was one of those moments for me to 'Don't forget where I came from. Don't forget your roots.'  New situation. New city. New everything. But at the end of the day, I am who I am.

GH: Who are you?

BM: Boye Mafe.

GH: Who is Boye Mafe?

BM: Just a guy.

GH: That's my favorite term in the league. Just A Guy. A JAG. You're looking at the ultimate JAG.

BM: Just a guy, just a guy.

GH: But a self-made guy with a great story. When you remind yourself where you came from, when you go visit Nigeria, what attracts you?

BM: The food, by far the food, and the access and, just honestly, the lifestyle. The way they treat people. You treat your elders with respect, the way you go about your day, and the sense of community over there. It doesn't matter if you're blood-related or not, but you treat everybody like family.

GH: Have you got an example?

BM: If you're walking down the street, you see some kids messing around doing something … No, you treat them like your own kids. You tell them, 'Hey, hey stop.'

GH: Your folks had to give you a lot of that.

BM: A hundred percent. We were raised in the community aspect. It didn't matter if they were my parents or not, but they definitely were teaching it.

GH: Any particular Nigerian dishes that you like?

BM: I like eba, I like Jollof Rice, I like a lot of different things. For me, anything really Nigerian.

GH: How about dress?

BM: We have traditional clothing. All those are great. I still wear traditional clothing to this day, and I try to honor my heritage  with that.

GH:  I'm not sure I've seen you in them.

BM: Not yet. They're coming. They're coming. They're coming.

GH:  Would that be something you would wear to a game?

BM: Oh yeah. I kind of pick and choose throughout the year, but there'll definitely be a couple games I'll wear them.

GH: How about music?

BM: I always listen to Nigerian music. I love Nigerian music. Afro beats. To this day I still listen to some of the classics that my parents used to play in the car and around the house.

GH: Any examples?

BM: One of my favorites is Sweet Mother.

GH: For many reasons, I guess. Did they like to listen to that?

BM: Oh yeah. I play that around my dad, he'll get out singing right now.

GH: Do you listen to it before a game?

BM: It's on my playlist every Sunday.

GH: What else is on that playlist?

BM: A wide range of things. I kind of crescendo into my day. I like to play some calm music once at the beginning of my day, and then once I get closer to game time, I kind of ramp it up and get more upbeat music.

GH: Do you have a foundation?

BM:  I started a foundation this year. We're working on some projects coming up soon, trying to do some things in the community in Cincinnati.

GH: Anything you have your eye on?

BM: I just want to give back to the community. For me, one of the things is opening doors for people. Coming from where I came from, the NFL was a far shot. But I want to show these kids that you can do it, too. It doesn't matter who you are as long as your determination is there. Honestly, for me, I'm open to anybody as long as I can find a way to help them.

GH: How long was your shot growing up in Minneapolis?

BM: I was a two-star athlete. I wasn't anything crazy coming out of high school. Wasn't highly recruited . Wasn't one of those big name stars. It was one of those things you put yourself to the grindstone. I redshirted my freshman year (at Minnesota). It took time. Rome isn't built in a day. But over time, with determination, practice, long hours, spending time on the field by myself.

GH: Then to become the 40th pick in the draft is quite a thing. Cashius Howell (Bengals rookie defensive end) has a similar story as the 41st pick this year coming out of high school in Kansas City with no Power 5 offers.

BM: That's why I like Cash a lot. He has that motor. He has that mentality, and he understands what it's like to work for something that you want.

GH: Do you think you get that from your family? Your parents came over from Nigeria almost 50 years ago and they both built successful businesses while raising you and your five siblings. That's kind of a longshot story, too,

BM: A hundred percent. My dad taught me that early. I remember days when I'd wake up for school, he'd be up already in his office for an hour before I even got ready to go to school. He always taught me to work in the dark. One thing a coach used to say to me in college. What you do in the dark will always come to light, no matter what it is.

GH: I read a story where you say you think of your late mother every day. Is there a certain moment during the day when you think of her?

BM: Even on my drive over to work, or throughout the day I'll think of her. A lot of times, if there's a situation where I'm frustrated, where things are maybe not going my way, I always try to think back because she was a very selfless person. Someone who takes care of the people around her.

I always try to find a way to make somebody else's day brighter. If I can make somebody laugh, it's a good day for me.

GH: Did she make you laugh?

BM: She made me laugh. No matter how hard of a situation or whatever I brought to her, she would always look at me and still be proud. It doesn't matter if it was good, bad, or indifferent. She never switched how she parented me.

GH: Did she ever see you play at Minnesota?

BM: No, but she saw me go to college. Spring of my freshman year is when I lost her (from pancreatic cancer).

GH: How has that impacted you?

BM: It's taught me a lot. Learning that life goes on. One thing I try to do … While she was battling her cancer, she never was a down person. She never was grumpy. She never was sad. She'd always find a way to smile in every situation.

I have her personality from that standpoint. No matter what's going on around me or how hard my day might go, that's not about me all the time.

GH: How do you think you fit into the defensive line room? Have you fit into the room doing that?

BM: Yeah, A hundred percent. I try to keep the room light-hearted. Try to get the guys …  remind their mindset. Things don't always go your way. So just no matter what, guys have to keep goin. Just remember that we 've got to go and do our job regardless.

GH: Your locker is right there in the corner. Is that a good place to be able to dispense that?

BM: I like it because I can see everything, and I can find ways to see guys. Go talk to him real quick and make sure he's okay, check in with him, and just see how people are doing.

GH: How has Bengals defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery shaped your game?

BM: He's taught me a lot, making sure he's slowing down the pictures for me. I feel like that's helped me a lot. Seeing, recognizing situations that are coming, trying to find plays where you can get a little advantage. Really slowing the game down for me, so I can be like, okay, this is what I see. This is the picture. Trust it, and trusting in myself to go out there and do.  Sometimes as player it's hard where you can be, I think this might happen, but giving me the freedom and the ideas of trust what you see and go play it.

GH: It seems like sacks don't mean a lot to you. It seems like you'd rather get a stop on third and two in the run.

BM: Sacks are a great stat. Don't get me wrong, I love the pass rush. Pass rush is art form. I look at it as an art form. Song and dance. It means something to me. At the end of the day, sacks are great plays, but you want to get the stop. It's a team game. It's not just about you. I never say stats completely tell you the type of player someone is.

GH: I know you pride yourself on setting the edge in the run game as much as you do getting a sack. In the last three games, the run numbers haven't been good on the perimeter. Have you adjusted your game in the run at all?

BM: It's definitely a different situation. Like you said, they're attacking our perimeters, and understanding what that is and knowing what we've got to do to be our best selves is the key, important thing. Making sure that we are playing our best ball. We have a great staff here. The coaches put us in the best position. Understanding what that is, It's not about necessarily us on the edge making the play. Sometimes it's about us setting an edge. Sometimes about us funneling the ball to our guys. And if I can do my job, if it's taking up two, three guys so that somebody else can make the play, those are things that need to be done.

GH: Is that kind of what has happened the last month as teams have kind of hit the perimeter on you guys?

BM: Yeah, I mean, it's an accumulation of a bunch of things. There are things that we can obviously do better. There are things overall that always have to be better. Finding those things and split the bye week like this, this is the time to really evaluate and see what it is we can get better.

GH: So after looking at the run game end of it and trying to do more there, whether you get Lamar Jackson or Tyler Huntley at quarterback Sunday, the edge is huge because you know those two guys are going to attack the perimeter by themselves, right?

BM: For sure, they definitely will. We have a game plan for that, and these guys stick with the plan. One thing is about learning to trust your wingman, understanding that there's 11 people out there, not just one or two, and knowing how we can adapt to that and how we can help out,  making sure that they don't have those access lanes.

GH: What's the toughest thing about playing Lamar?

BM:  His second play is his best play. He'll scramble, run, make a deep throw. Keep him in pocket, but at the same time, you've got to mess up his rhythm, mess up his timing. You don't want him to feel rhythmic back there. You want him to feel uncomfortable at the same time.

GH: Do you figure they're just going to try and hammer running back Derrick Henry on the edges?

BM: I could see that happening. For us, it's one of those cases, you try to figure out what their bread and butters are and what they like to do and hone in on those.  Shore up the edges, make sure you muddy up the pictures, not give them free access lanes.

GH: On the other side, your offense is going against Ravens edge rusher Trey Hendrickson. The Bengals globally attacked fixing the defense, but you're the guy they signed in free agency to replace him. Is that in the back of your mind that Hendrickson is on the other side? (In fact, Mafe's locker was Hendrickson's last year.)

BM: He's not on the field when I'm on the field. It's not like I'm going to really see him. I don't really try to compare myself to anybody else. My mindset is to be the best version of me. If my best version looks different than somebody else's, it's not for my opinion.

GH: Will you be able to play Sweet Mother in the locker room on that machine Joe Burrow has by his locker?

BM: One of these days.