BENGALS Lewis is not sure if Palmer will play

The Cincinnati coach hasn't decided if injured players will face the Chiefs.
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Coach Marvin Lewis hasn't decided whether to play injured Pro Bowl quarterback Carson Palmer in a regular-season finale that has lost most of its significance for the Cincinnati Bengals.
The AFC North champions will have little at stake Sunday against Kansas City, which is still contending for a playoff spot.
The Bengals (11-4) will host a first-round game a week later against a wild-card team.
Palmer slightly strained his groin while scrambling to the sideline Saturday in the final minute of a 37-27 loss to Buffalo that cost the Bengals a chance for a first-round bye.
Palmer stayed in for one more play -- Terrence McGee's clinching 46-yard interception return.
Lewis said Monday that Palmer's injury doesn't appear to be serious.
He declined to say whether he's considering resting him and other hobbled players in Kansas City to get them ready for the playoffs. He wants to wait until later in the week to see how they're doing before deciding.
"We'll see what happens," he said. "We'll play to win the game."
O'Neal injured
Pro Bowl cornerback Deltha O'Neal bruised his knee early in the first quarter against Buffalo, and had a limp when he returned later in the game. Lewis could consider resting him as well if they're still limping later in the week.
"Both of those guys didn't seem to be real bad today," he said.
Players had Monday off, free to come in for treatment or a workout at their convenience. After the game on Saturday, Palmer said he expected to be available to play in Kansas City.
If Palmer's injury is a concern, Jon Kitna could get his first start of the season against the Chiefs (9-6), who still have a slim chance of getting the conference's final wild card berth. They'd have to beat the Bengals and get losses by Pittsburgh and San Diego.
The Steelers have the best shot, needing only a win over Detroit (5-10) to clinch a playoff spot. Jacksonville will be the other wild card team.
Lewis will balance two concerns this week: getting his team healthy, and getting it back on a roll.
The loss to Buffalo was the first time this season that the Bengals played poorly against a team they were expected to beat. Kelly Holcomb passed for 308 yards, McGee returned a kickoff and an interception for touchdowns, and the Bills won a road game for the first time all season.
Lewis spent Christmas brooding over the loss.
"That's a good lesson for our football team," he said. "We tried to do a little bit too much the other day. We tried to guess a little bit and saw this and saw that and chased some ghosts."
Thornton's view
Defensive tackle John Thornton, one of four Bengals who has played in a Super Bowl for another team, said it's important to finish the regular season with a better game, no matter who is in the lineup.
"We need to go play well and get our confidence back," Thornton said Monday. "It'll be good in the sense that we have another game to play [before the playoffs]. We haven't played well at home in the last three games."
The Bengals are 6-1 on the road this season, and would set a franchise record with another win in Kansas City. They're only 5-3 at home. In the last four games at Paul Brown Stadium, they've lost to Indianapolis and Buffalo and struggled to beat Cleveland and Baltimore.