Bengals defensive end Jonathan Fanene finished the 2009 season as the team's best pass rusher, filling in for an injured Antwan Odom and ranking second on the team with six quarterback sacks. Fanene was expected to have a similar role this year as a pass rusher, either as a defensive tackle or replacing Robert Geathers on passing downs. However, Fanene suffered a hamstring injury against New England and missed seven of the next eight games.
On Thursday the Bengals shut him down for the season placing him on the season-ending injured reserve list. Fanene, who signed a three-year deal in 2008 with $1.15 million due in salary this season, will be a free agent after this year.
Cincinnati then signed former St. Louis Rams defensive end Victor Adeyanju. Entering his fifth season out of Indiana, Adeyanju only recorded three career quarterback sacks in 53 games played. Adeyanju was cut on final cutdown day by the Rams in early September. VanRam, blogger at Turf Show Times (SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog) writes that Adeyanju is "a solid role player who plays the run well."
Also, on Wednesday, Carlos Holmes wrote that the Bengals had signed defensive end Bobby McCray. We can largely write that Holmes missed another one.
Fanene is the fourth player placed on Injured Reserve in the past week, along with Mike Nugent, Andre Smith and Morgan Trent.