CINCINNATI (AP) -- Peyton Manning warmed up, then headed to

midfield for the pregame coin toss, politely shaking the hands of

five Cincinnati Bengals along the way.

Coach Tony Dungy made sure the Bengals wouldn't touch him again.

The winless Colts rested their entire starting offense and all

but two players on defense Friday night, playing it safe instead of

playing for real. The Bengals took advantage of the mismatch,

rolling to a 38-0 victory in the final preseason game.

Carson Palmer led the Bengals (2-2) to touchdowns on their first

two drives, going 6-of-7 for 107 yards before calling it a night.

Cincinnati scored on its first three possessions, piling up a

256-16 advantage in yards.

How easy was it? The Bengals had 346 yards at halftime, setting

up their most lopsided preseason win since a 45-0 drubbing of Tampa

Bay in 1977.

"For our team in that situation, you just want to do what

you're supposed to do, and we accomplished that," coach Marvin

Lewis said. "But it means zero."

The Colts (0-5) finished their first winless preseason since

1990, but Dungy didn't mind. When Indianapolis introduced its

offense before the game, not one starter ran out from the tunnel.

Only two defensive starters took the field -- middle linebacker Gary

Brackett and cornerback Nick Harper -- for the opening series.

"It's been a strange preseason with the five games," said

Manning, who sat out a game for only the second time in his career.

"It was kind of their (coaches') decision to give some guys some

rest. Obviously it was not a good result."

The backups had a tough time against a Bengals offense that was

at full strength and eager to flex some muscle. Cincinnati's first

team had failed to get into the end zone in two preseason games,

prompting Lewis to turn up the intensity.

The stars were aligned -- sitting all in a row on the Colts'

bench -- for the Bengals' breakout night in front of a big crowd.

Cincinnati sold 59,781 tickets, the most ever for one of its

preseason games.

"We just wanted to come out and be crisp," Palmer said. "We

wanted to get our work in, get in and get out and keep everybody

healthy."

Rudi Johnson's 3-yard touchdown run completed a 75-yard drive

that opened the game. The Bengals then went 91 yards, with T.J.

Houshmandzadeh catching a 14-yard pass from Palmer for the score.

When Jeremi Johnson went into the end zone standing up for a 5-yard

score, the fans gave a halfhearted ovation.

Asked what he got out of the game, receiver Chad Johnson said,

"Really, nothing. You're just putting together as much as you can.

You work on whatever you're working on personally, and you just

want to get out healthy."

The talent mismatch made it tough for the Bengals to gauge

themselves. They'll open the season next Sunday in Cleveland hoping

they've worked out the kinks, but not knowing for sure.

By contrast, Dungy knows what he's got and wasn't about to

jeopardize any of it.

"The best thing is, the preseason's over," Dungy said.

The Colts opened in Tokyo against Atlanta, absorbed some

injuries and returned jet-lagged. They finally got in sync last

week against Denver, where Manning bruised his left shoulder in the

third quarter. Manning looked fine in practice and would have

played Friday if the game mattered.

It was only the second time in his career that he missed a game.

Manning also sat out a preseason game against the Bengals in 2001

because of a sprained knee.

A few of the Colts' backups got banged up on Friday, including

first-round draft pick Marlin Jackson. The cornerback didn't start,

but got into the game and bruised his shoulder.

The loss concluded a chaotic week for Indianapolis, which opens

the season in Baltimore. Linebacker Kendyll Pope got a season-long

suspension on Wednesday for violating the league's substance abuse

policy, and defensive tackle Corey Simon signed on Thursday.

Simon, who missed the entire preseason in a contract dispute

with Philadelphia, didn't accompany the team to Cincinnati.Game notes
Colts backups OT Makoa Freitas (foot), LB Gilbert Gardner

(ankle) and WR Brad Pyatt (shoulder) also were hurt. ... Bengals

backup WR Kevin Walter suffered a mild concussion. ... It was the

Colts' most lopsided preseason loss since a 45-3 defeat in Seattle

in 1997. The last time they were shut out in the preseason was

1992, a 20-0 loss to the Bengals at Riverfront Stadium. ... Palmer

was 35-of-67 in preseason for 432 yards with three touchdowns and

two interceptions. His passer rating was 75.