--CB Maurice Leggett, for the second straight day, was limited in practice Thursday and remains questionable for Cincinnati with a shoulder injury. Leggett, the Chiefs' nickel back, has missed the last two games with the injury.

--DE/DT Alfonso Boone participated in a full workout for a second straight day Thursday and looks probable to play against Cincinnati despite battling a thigh injury.

--RB Larry Johnson has a 2-1 record in three starts against the Bengals. In the two victories, he averaged 5.6 yards a carry and 160 yards a game. In the one loss, he was limited to 17-68.

--TE Tony Gonzalez, who turned 30 in 2006, has had two of his four 1,000-yard seasons since that milestone. He's topped the 1,000-yard mark in each of the past two seasons, and is the only tight end in NFL history to have four 1-K campaigns. He needs nine catches against Cincinnati to have the second 100-catch campaign of his career.

GAME PLAN: Kansas City simply has to stop the running of Cincy's Cedric Benson, who ran for 171 last week in the Bengals second consecutive victory. The idea has to be making Ryan Fitzpatrick throw a lot of passes in what could be an inclement weather game. Even though Fitzpatrick enjoys an edge in throwing to T.J. Houshmandzadeh and an ailing Chad Johnson, Kansas City still must try to make Cincy one dimensional. A rare defensive stop in a game when neither defense is very good will be big here.

The same thing holds true for Kansas City's offense. If Larry Johnson isn't running well, it all goes on QB Tyler Thigpen and his "Pistol" offense. KC threw twice as many times as it ran (21) in last week's loss to Miami, even though Johnson ran well on his limited opportunities (12-108). He'll need more chances this week.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH: Bengals RB Cedric Benson vs. Chiefs run defense. Hey, look at this. Kansas City's rush defense isn't at the bottom of the league anymore! Maybe there's a chance of holding Benson is something close to check -- like somewhere under 200.

Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez vs. Bengals cover units. Gonzalez would love to get nine catches for his second 100-reception season of his career. Teams usually try to double him with a linebacker-safety combination, and Gonzalez still gets open. That's good, because young QB Thigpen often just locks in on him.

INJURY IMPACT: The Chiefs are in good shape, though most of their long-standing injuries were relegated to injured reserve some time ago. Of the walking wounded, CB Maurice Leggett looks the most questionable with a shoulder injury. DT/DE Alfonso Boone continues to play on with a thigh injury.