Linebacker Keith Rivers, the ninth overall pick in the 2008 draft, has ended his holdout and signed with the Cincinnati Bengals.

We heard last night, during a rare break from all-Favre, all the time, that an agreement was close.  Earlier today, in a rare moment of non-Favre sanity, we heard that Rivers was on his way to Cincinnati (technically, Georgetown, Kentucky) to ink the deal.

Per a league source, the deal bridged the gap between linebacker Jerod Mayo’s deal at No. 10 and the Sedrick Ellis contract at No. 7 via a significant fourth-year escalator.

Also, Rivers will earn $4 million more than Mayo in the first four years. 

As we understand it, Rivers can earn $23 million via cumulative play-time triggers.  We’re in the process of tracking down more details.