Boye Mafe appears to be Seattle's next great edge rusher
Against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 6, Mafe had a sack and this was his third-straight game with a sack. Against Cincinnati, the sack that Mafe picked up was based on the scheme that freed Mafe to make a direct line to Joe Burrow (shout out to defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt for the design of the play!). But not every Mafe great play in 2023 was simply because of the scheme.
Mafe is a big, fast edge rusher who can also set a hard edge against the run. One of the reasons Seattle's run defense is so far much better than 2022 is because Boye Mafe is taking up a lot of the snaps that Darrell Taylor used to get. Taylor was atrocious against the run last year and doesn't seem to have the skills to get much better in that facet. Mafe is simply a better overall player.
So far this year, Mafe has 14 total pressures, including 10 QB hurries, the 3 sacks and another QB hit. In Mafe's rookie year of 2022, he wasn't bad but only had 10 total pressures all season and had 3 sacks. So he's already tied his sack number from last season. It's important to note that Mafe has only played in four games this year because he missed Week 2 with an injury.
Mafe also has 4 tackles for loss in 2023, one in each game. He also hasn't missed a tackle. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Mafe has graded as the 22nd-best edge rusher in the league. He is 15th-best against the run. Among the top 22 graded edge rushers, Mafe is the third youngest. Basically, Boye Mafe is ascending and could be a dominant player very soon.