The Cincinnati Bengals' priciest free agent will combine with others in the trenches to instill doubt in the Cleveland Browns' newest franchise cornerstone.
Fresh off a Super Bowl win in Seattle, Boye Mafe inked a three-year, $60 million deal in free agency to join the Bengals. It was part of an aggressive offseason that climaxed days before the 2026 NFL Draft, when Cincinnati traded the 10th overall pick for All-Pro nose tackle Dexter Lawrence.
But it'll be Mafe squaring off with the Bengals' newest individual foe, Utah offensive tackle Spencer Fano, who was the Browns' No. 9 overall pick on Thursday night.
Spencer's game is all about intelligence and awareness
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) April 24, 2026
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New Bengals DE Boye Mafe will give Browns rookie Spencer Fano all he can handle in AFC North
Although Fano started at right tackle during his last two seasons with the Utes, he has experience on the left side, and will likely move back there in the NFL. The Browns traded for Texans vet Tytus Howard this offseason, and he's played right tackle for the most part over his last four years.
Mafe is meant to replace Trey Hendrickson as the predominant right-side defensive end on Cincinnati's front. That means there'll be a whole lot of one-on-one collisions with Fano in the coming years.
This should be one of the more compelling duels between tackle and edge in the entire sport. All the upside is there to suggest Mafe could be a double-digit sack stalwart, and Fano allowed zero sacks, and zero QB hits in 2025.
Unstoppable force, meet immovable object!
Where the Bengals should have an edge here is the interior pass rush and the games/stunts they can run in the hopes of overwhelming Fano. As technically sound as Fano is reputed to be, he's a little on the lighter side, and can be overpowered at the point of attack.
To remain focused on Mafe, as opposed to the Bengals' other intriguing addition on the interior in Lawrence and Jonathan Allen, the ex-Seahawk converts speed to power very well. He's a supreme athlete who can win with raw speed off the edge, too.
In other words, Mafe has the tool set to put Fano in a serious bind. Adjusting to the speed of the NFL game and the raw strength he's going up against will present Fano with some serious challenges. The more Mafe can demoralize him, the less effective Cleveland's offense becomes in those twice-annual divisional matchups.
Can't wait to see how all this plays out on Sundays. Should be some memorable battles between Mafe and Fano. May the best man win!
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