As expected, wide receivers Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh did not show up today when the Cincinnati Bengals opened their off-season conditioning program. But coach Marvin Lewis is doing his best to downplay the matter.

Mark Curnutte of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Lewis said a lot without really saying much of anything.

“What I addressed is that in the NFL, there are a lot of situations occur and they are not a bearing on any one particular player,” Lewis said. “Guys have different things that they are dealing with – whether it is pending free agency – there are a lot of variables that occur. And whatever occurs, this is professional football, you have to deal with it in your way.”

Lewis also said that he has had a few conversations with Johnson and that although Johnson has seemed unhappy in Cincinnati, “My conversations with Chad this year have been no different than they were a year ago.”

Meanwhile, the Bengals signed three players and waived one. Wide receiver Glen Holt and linebackers Rashad Jeanty and Corey Mays, all of whom were exclusive-rights free agents with the Bengals, all signed one-year deals. The Bengals waived cornerback Brandon Williams, who spent last season on injured reserve after a preseason shoulder injury.