Odafe Oweh

Odafe Jayson Oweh (/əˈdɑːfeɪ ˈoʊweɪ/; born December 15, 1998), is an American professional football linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions and was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft.

Oweh was born in Hackensack, New Jersey to a Nigerian-born father and a London-born mother of Nigerian descent. He attended Blair Academy in Blairstown, New Jersey. While at Blair Academy, he became best friends with former teammate David Ojabo. He was selected to play in the 2018 Under Armour All-America Game. Oweh committed to Penn State to play college football.

As a true freshman at Penn State in 2018, Oweh played in four games and had two sacks. As a sophomore in 2019, he played in 13 games with one start and had 21 tackles and five sacks. He recorded 38 tackles, including seven tackles for a loss, in the 2020 season.

Oweh was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round (31st overall) of the 2021 NFL draft, which they previously obtained in a trade that sent Orlando Brown Jr. to the Kansas City Chiefs. Soon after the draft, Oweh announced that he would be going by his first name Odafe instead of his middle name Jayson, which he went by in college to avoid confusion regarding the pronunciation of his first name. He signed his four-year rookie contract, worth $12.6 million, on June 10, 2021.

Oweh got his first career forced fumble and recovery late in the fourth quarter against Clyde Edwards-Helaire and the Chiefs, his second career game. The turnover helped seal a 36–35 victory. He was named the defensive player of the week for his performance, which included three tackles, a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. He also had a quarterback hit on Patrick Mahomes that led to an interception by his teammate Tavon Young. He would not play the final two weeks of the season due to injury, becoming just one of the many Ravens players that would be injured that season. Oweh finished his rookie season with 33 total tackles, 5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, and a pass breakup. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

In Week 4 against the Buffalo Bills, he forced a fumble that was recovered by fellow teammate Marcus Williams and also had a sack on Josh Allen. However, the Ravens would lose 20–23. He finished the season with 43 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble and a recovery in 17 games and six starts.

In 13 games and five starts in 2023, Oweh finished fourth on the team with five sacks, along with 23 tackles and two forced fumbles.

On April 30, 2024, the Ravens picked up the fifth-year option on Oweh's contract.