When they’re not at work, Ravens players Nnamdi Madubuike, Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo can be found lounging and eating jollof rice together to the sound of Burna Boy singing in the background.

It’s very chill, and it’s very Nigerian — just how they like it.

But when it’s time to go to work, they’re not so chill anymore. Outside of the occasional dance break, they can be seen running extra laps together after practice or attacking reps and discussing how to get better. They’re hardworking, aggressive players who take pride in their craft — and that’s very Nigerian, too.

“Culture, pride — we have a lot of pride — confidence, music, love to dance, respect. ... The way we do things, it goes back to family, big on academics,” Oweh said when describing what it means to be Nigerian.

And food — “We got the BEST food, man” — Ojabo added.

Their Nigerian heritage shapes them as men and as players. As they’ve come to embrace their culture and their true selves, this trio of Ravens hopes they’re showing other Nigerian Americans — or immigrants from any culture and their children — that they can be themselves in any environment, too. For two of them, that meant a name change, and it’s already having an impact.

“I think it’s now becoming cool to be African, cool to be Nigerian,” said Chukwunonso “Vincent” Iweanoge, the chair of the Governor’s Commission on African Affairs in Maryland. “So a lot of kids now more identify with Burna Boy and all the other stuff. ... And now you throw out people that also have made it, that answer to their [Nigerian] names. So that’s helping their psyche to be proud of what their names signify and who they are.”

Although they all ended up in Baltimore, breaking bread and sharing some of the same traditions, the three Ravens have had varied experiences with their cultural identities.

Ojabo was the only one of the three born in Nigeria, although his family moved to Scotland when he was young. He then moved to the U.S. without his parents and siblings to focus on his basketball career. At Blair High School in New Jersey, he found Oweh, who directed him to football and whose mother’s cooking helped stem Ojabo’s homesickness.

Oweh was born in New Jersey to Nigerian parents. Although his heritage played a huge role at home and at school, a younger Oweh was less inclined to be different. Instead of going by Odafe or Dafe, as he did at home, he went by his English middle name, Jayson.

“It took some time,” Oweh said about getting used to being called Jayson. “But it was better than people saying oh-DA-fee or oh-doh-fay or OH-da-fay, botching it. When you’re younger, you shouldn’t be that impressionable, but you are.”

It wasn’t just Oweh who did that, though. He grew up in a diverse town in New Jersey, and he remembers lots of other students from different backgrounds who went by one name at school and another one at home. It took him maturing as he went through high school and college to become OK with being different and proud of his heritage in every way.

So, when he was selected by the Ravens at 31st overall in the 2021 NFL draft, he started going by his Nigerian name.

“It’s so funny that this new season in his life, he made that announcement that he wants to go back to the name where it all began,” his mother, Tania, told The Baltimore Sun at the time. “He may not understand it now, but it has some spiritual implications, also. And so it’s a very exciting time.”

When Oweh made that decision, one of his new Ravens teammates took notice. Madubuike, drafted the year before, went by Justin at the time, but he was always called by his Nigerian middle name, Nnamdi, at home.

Like Oweh, Madubuike is a first-generation American. However, unlike Oweh, he grew up in a much less diverse area, a suburb of Dallas. When Oweh met him, he said, Madubuike was not yet loud and proud about his Nigerian culture. Oweh himself was just delving into the idea of repping his heritage at the NFL level. But, through their friendship, Madubuike started on a similar journey.

And then, when the Ravens drafted Ojabo in 2022, he rounded out a trio that could all vibe together. Recently, the Ravens added Adedayo Odeleye, a British Nigerian pass rusher, to the practice squad. He said the other three made it easier for him to fit in.

“It’s big,” Oweh said. “It’s just like we understand each other. So it’s easier to come into that, too. … I thank EDC [general manager Eric DeCosta] every time that he brought in David, because it made me be more comfortable in my culture and in just bringing it up.”

After four seasons in the league, followed by a huge contract extension, Madubuike started thinking more seriously about the name he wanted to be known by. His mentors always told him to “keep it real,” and he started thinking about what his “real” name is. His loved ones called him Nnamdi, making it his real name in his heart, so he decided to soft launch it on the nameplate above his locker during preseason.

Just before the 2024 season kicked off, he made it official, saying “It’s important to know where you come from and your roots.” He thinks his decision can help set a trend to embrace more ethnic names.

“I think it’s a good movement. If it’s really in your heart to do that, you should do that. ... Do you. I don’t want to judge,” he said. “But it was something that was in my heart.”

Little did he know how quickly he made an impact.

Iweanoge explained that many Nigerians of the Igbo tribe, like Madubuike and Oweh’s mom, or the Urhobo tribe, including Oweh’s dad, are Christians and have English names because they are biblical. Even outside the United States, it is common to have an English and a Nigerian name.

When Iweanoge, a Nigerian immigrant and principal at the Washington-based financial firm Havit Inc., saw the Madubuike news, he immediately shared it with his children.

“My daughter, who is a huge Ravens fan, was so proud because he is one of her favorite players, and she could identify with him,” he said. “Also, because she doesn’t have any English names, all her names are African.”

Like Oweh, Iweanoge’s children weren’t always thrilled about having such different-sounding names from their peers, despite growing up in a diverse area.

“Of course, the kids also had issues when they went to school that they didn’t want to be identified by their African names because it wasn’t cool,” Iweanoge said.

After moving from D.C., where he went to law school, to Prince George’s County, Iweanoge began working with local government to figure out how to get African immigrants more involved. He has helped establish advisory boards and proclamations, which are ceremonial recognitions, in multiple counties and at the state level.

On Sept. 10, Gov. Wes Moore declared September to be African Heritage Month in Maryland. The governor, whose maternal grandparents are immigrants from Jamaica and Cuba, was also excited to hear about Madubuike’s decision to change his first name.

“As the proud son of an immigrant,” Moore said, “I know how important it is for someone’s culture to be embraced.

“Here in Maryland, we celebrate the mosaic of the African diaspora and its rich presence in our state and the African immigrant community’s vital role in shaping our future — and that’s why we proclaimed September as African Heritage Month for the first time in the state’s history.

“We want everyone to know that, in our state, we don’t shy away from our diversity — we welcome it.”

“I think it’s a good movement. If it’s really in your heart to do that, you should do that. ... Do you. I don’t want to judge. But it was something that was in my heart.”

Nnamdi Madubuike, on his name change

As much as Iweanoge, Moore and their colleagues have done to further recognition and education, they’ve struggled to reach the younger generation and help them bridge the gap between what they see at home and what they experience at school, Iweanoge said. Government proclamations can’t force kids to think Nigerian culture is cool.

“But the name changing, actually, I believe, does more for especially the younger generation because of that sense of identity,” Iweanoge said.

Society is coming around, though. Afrobeats are gaining popularity. Non-Nigerians are discovering how good Nigerian food can be. And prominent athletes in the region are declaring their heritage on television — in addition to the Ravens, the Washington Commanders had three players wear Nigerian flags on their helmets last season as part of the NFL Heritage program.

For now, there are no more name changes in the works at 1 Winning Drive. Ojabo said he prefers to go by David, although he has a Nigerian middle name, Adakole.

Otherwise, Madubuike, Oweh and Ojabo are repping Nigeran culture just by being themselves and living simple lives. They praise God and order catered food from a suya spot in Owings Mills (they wish they could cook, but this is better), getting pounded yams, egusi, chin chin and puff puff. They listen to their music, with Asake, Wizkid and Ruger also in the playlist.

And they wouldn’t hate it if DeCosta continued to fill the pass rush with Nigerians. It’s worked out so far. Madubuike is coming off a 13-sack season and has a half sack and five quarterback hits this season. Oweh is finding his final step and has made 3.5 sacks with seven quarterback hits. And Ojabo is healthy and getting his burst back, starting the year with three quarterback hits.

“It’s kind of like just a cherry on top,” Ojabo said. “That little chemistry we have, we can take from off the field and bring it on the field and, most importantly, just have fun with it.”