'Wingman Mentality' - Marquee Free Agent Boye Mafe Spearheading Bengals Defensive Change

Boye Mafe had a huge Bengals debut this past weekend, and he loves being a "wingman" to help the whole defense lift off together.

There were a lot of missed tackles for the team, as one of the five highest-missed-tackle-rate defenses in the league, but that can come with the territory when trying to punch out the ball as much as they did.

Mafe led the defense with a great 86.5 Pro Football Focus grade on 37 snaps.

Punch And Pull

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Boye Mafe (53) brings down Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) and forces a fumble in the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 1 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

It's been over 30 years since a defense posted that many fumble recoveries, paired with four-plus sacks, and while it's lucky to recover 100% of four forced fumbles, there's a clear mentality to get that ball out.

WLWT's Charlie Clifford noted on X that Cincinnati is the first team since the 1993 Saints to post the following Week 1 stat line on defense:

-4 sacks
-4 fumble recoveries
-Defensive TD

“They bring guys like us in for a reason,” Mafe noted to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer. “And one of those reasons is to change that narrative, create our own narrative, and show the guys what it can be here. And I think the biggest thing right now that is great for us is that we all have that belief in each other. And having that belief in each other and having that trust. Creating that wingman mentality is what’s going to take us so far.”

Cincinnati gave up less than 300 yards in the 33-27 win over Tampa Bay. A rarity from last year's unit, it helped the offense overcome a rough day from Ja'Marr Chase, along with a Tampa Bay defensive touchdown on the other side.

“It was huge. We had to step on the gas," Bryan Cook said about the scoop-and-score Demetrius Knight Jr. had to start the game. "We were trying to go out there and get our offense out on the field. That’s complementary football — no matter what, we have each other’s back. We weren’t trying to score, but when we put those points on the board, we felt more confident.”

It wasn't perfect, but Week 1 wins rarely are; just look back at how Cincinnati performed during 2020s openers before this one. The defense has injected a ton of excitement into the fan base and could be improved enough to buoy a big win total across ESPN FPI's easiest remaining schedule by far for the next 17 weeks.

Check out the full Bengals thoughts from Breer here.

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