He is eligible for unrestricted free agency in the offseason. The Bengals might use their franchise tag on Houshmandzadeh, which would severely limit his mobility in free agency.

"That's about it. (A team employee) asks me enough and guys joke around about it," said Houshmandzadeh, a seventh-round pick and seen initially as Chad Ocho Cinco's caddy. They were teammates at Oregon State.

Offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski saw Ocho Cinco on a scouting trip and liked Houshmandzadeh, too.

"It's not so much about this being my last game but, what's going to happen? I don't know. You just kind of plan accordingly," Houshmandzadeh said.

He ranks second in the NFL in the past two seasons with 204 receptions. Wes Welker of New England is No. 1 with 221 receptions.

Either way, for Houshmandzadeh, it's both a relief and sad that the season is ending.

"Yeah, a little bit, you know," he said when asked if he's glad the long grind has come to an end. "But once the season ends you enjoy the playoffs, I enjoy watching the games, and then once the Super Bowl ends you kind of can't wait for the season to start again.

"When it ends you're kind of like 'Man, I'm glad that's over,' but then you can't wait for it to start over. It's a double-edged sword, a little bit."

--A 4-3-1 finish is modest in general terms, but for a team that started 0-8, a plus-.500 ending would be significant.

That's what the Bengals are aiming for Sunday at home when Kansas City visits. The Bengals want to wrap up the season with a three-game win streak, having defeated Washington at home and the Browns in Cleveland the past two weeks.

The Bengals ran the ball for a season-high 191 yards against the Browns and would appear to have the same opportunity to run the ball on a poor Kansas City rush defense.

"This isn't where we wanted to be overall, but right now this part of the season feels like the icing on the cake," said right guard Bobbie Williams, a co-captain. "Kansas City has been playing everybody tough, so we can't let up one bit. And if we can finish the year with a little win streak, it really will give us something to build on in the offseason."

Stuck since Week 4 as the sole resident of last place in the AFC North, the Bengals can pass Cleveland into third place if they get a win over the Chiefs and a Pittsburgh victory over the Browns.

"Coach Lewis said we were going to finish 3-0, and maybe not a lot of people believed him at the time," said cornerback Leon Hall, who had three interceptions at Cleveland, one for a 50-yard touchdown. "But we embraced it. His confidence in us. We all bought in. Now we have to win one more and at least have a good end to the year."

The Bengals took a lot out of the Cleveland game.

It re-established a Cincinnati lead (36-35) in the "Battle of

Ohio" series against the Browns. It was the ninth shutout win in Bengals history. Hall's three interceptions tied the franchise record. Tailback Cedric Benson rushed for a career-high 171 yards, most by a Bengal since Rudi Johnson gained 202 vs. Cleveland on Nov. 28, 2004.

"Our team has hung together through a tough year," Lewis said, "and I commended them for handling the Cleveland game like real pros. They focused on how we needed to prepare and stuck with it all week. We knew the weather would be bad (18 degrees, with a zero wind chill), and we dealt with the conditions all day. We knew it would be the kind of game where you needed just a few big plays and otherwise just take care of the ball and not make mistakes or foolish penalties. Now it's all about how we finish against the Chiefs, and then it's on to all of us working to be better in 2009."

The Bengals sustained another major injury against the Browns when starting right tackle Stacy Andrews tore the ACL and other ligaments in his right knee toward the end of the game. Dennis Roland will likely start at right tackle against the Chiefs.

Starting quarterback Carson Palmer (inflamed throwing elbow) is out again for the 12th time. He is practicing this week, and surgery is still an option on his arm.

SERIES HISTORY: 25th regular-season meeting. Chiefs lead 13-11 overall, but the series is tied 5-5 with the Bengals as the home team. The Chiefs won last year's game, 27-20. The last game in Cincinnati, in 2003, was a memorable one, as Cincinnati toppled a 9-0 Chiefs squad by 24-19 during Marvin Lewis' first season as head coach.