Bengals Rookie Mohamed Sanu Could Miss Rest of Season

Nov 25, 2012; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Mohamed Sanu (12) catches a pass for a touchdown against Oakland Raiders cornerback Ron Bartell (21) in the first half at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Frank Victores-US PRESSWIRE

Just as the Bengals seemed to find the answer to the number two wide receiver question that everyone had been asking since the beginning of training camp, the emerging answer may now be plagued with an injury that could keep him out for the rest of the season.

Mohamed Sanu has been a breakout player for the 2012 Bengals. He started his exciting career with the team after being drafted in the third round of the 2012 draft. He had a great training camp and went out in week three of the regular season and threw a touchdown bomb to A.J. Green out of the wild cat. Still, the question for the Bengals was unanswered. The young receiver could throw, but he hadn’t been proven yet in the receiving game.

As injuries occurred, Sanu got his chance to settle in to the wide receiver position that he was drafted for. In his first start, he recorded the second most receiving yards on the team with 27 in the week 7 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Coming back after the bye, he saw two more balls thrown his way for 29 yards against the Denver Broncos.

After that game, Sanu was off to the races. In the following matchup, he caught four passes for 47 yards and his first NFL receiving touchdown. The only player ahead of him in stats for the team was A.J. Green. In the next game, he got another touchdown to help his team win out over the Chiefs, only to put up two more scores against Oakland the following week.

He has been listed in the top four receivers in every game since the first game he started in this season. All of this, and he is only a rookie. The Bengals appeared to have found an answer to their question and the perfect complement to Green and Jermaine Gresham on the field.

Now that hope may be dashed, though. It was reported yesterday via the team website that Mohamed Sanu suffered a foot injury in practice. After a closer look at the foot, the injury is determined to be a stress fracture that requires surgery.

Many websites state that stress fractures can take anywhere from 6-8 weeks to heal. After the fracture has healed, the patient can ease back in to their daily activity at a slow pace. With only five regular season games left, that would likely put Mohamed Sanu out for the rest of the season.

This is a major blow to a Bengals organization that has been on a high the last few weeks. Sanu has emerged as the number two receiver behind A.J. Green and has caught four touchdowns in the past three games. Though he was slow to emerge, his injury is going to be quick to hit this team where it hurts.