No one can ever remember a Bengals injury report on the Wednesday before the opener looking so blank.

It even said so. “No injuries to report.”

There is something else no one can remember, either, as the Bengals prepped for Sunday’s game (1 p.m.-Cincinnati’s FOX 19) in Cleveland. In the last 39 days before the opener, had they ever signed a former first-round tight end with 300 career catches, a second-round guard with 81 NFL starts, and a nose tackle with two rings from his four Super Bowls?

When Noah Fant came through that door July 31, Dalton Risner followed on Aug 28., and Mike Pennel signed on to the practice squad four days later, players, including the big fellah, noticed.

The Bengals front office and director of player personnel Duke Tobin didn’t hang it up back on March 18, when they gave historic deals to wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. To be fair, the Risner and Pennel deals also got lost a bit in the big ones with NFL sack champion Trey Hendrickson’s $14 million raise on Aug. 25.

“I think those three signings will help us,” said quarterback Joe Burrow unsolicited when he responded to a question about Risner.

“I agree, and that is, like you said, rare to be able to get players of that caliber this late in the process,” Burrow said after practice. “Obviously, you’d like to be able to get them earlier so they can be integrated in the scheme, in the team. But they’re all pros. We’re pros, and at the end of the day, when you’re out there on Sundays, you got to be able to play well and execute the play that is called, and those guys are all veterans who know how to play football, and it’s really been seamless so far.”

Left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. noticed, too. You knew he was going to know all about the defensive lineman, Pennel, a 34-year-old nose tackle with 33 tackles in 17 postseason games.

“Pennel’s a baller. He’s done it. He’s won championships. He’s played at a high level for a long time. For what we’ve created from a culture standpoint, these are the right guys to bring in at the right time,” Brown said.

“All three are impact players that, are to me, starters in this league. They have been starters. It’s a testament to upstairs bringing in the right people, right for what we do. I know for a fact that we’re going to get the most out of everybody.”

They brought in right guard Lucas Patrick a few weeks after they signed Chase and Higgins. He turned 32 the day before Fant signed, so he knows about all the trio. Particularly Pennel.

“Since my first team of employment, I’ve seen Mike P.,” Patrick said of the Packers. “Not many guys that big can move like that. Noah’s been a highly-touted, highly drafted player. His skill set is fantastic. He’s doing some really good stuff in the run game with us. Dalton … You can never have enough guys who can block. Nothing like experience. You never know what happens in a season.

“Sign of a good team. They’re still evaluating, still bringing in guys.”

Brown, an eight-year vet himself, hasn’t seen an influx of talent hit a roster like this in the preseason. A sign, he believes, of a management that thinks they can win it all now.

“I think for what we want. The understanding and expectation from our front office and upstairs, they know what’s at stake,” Brown said.