an away elimination final.Adelaide are the best attackin

CINCINNATI -- Andy Dalton was sharp in his return, leading the Cincinnati Bengals into field-goal range on his only drive during the Minnesota Vikings 17-16 preseason victory Friday night.Daltons season ended at Paul Brown Stadium last Dec. 13 when he broke the thumb on his passing hand while making a tackle during an interception return.On Friday night, he completed his first four passes for 32 yards. He threw too high for A.J. Green on a third-down play, and Mike Nugent was wide right on a 48-yard field-goal attempt that ended the drive and Daltons day.I thought it went smooth, Dalton said. I thought it was crisp and sharp. I wish we would have scored.The teams held joint practices in Cincinnati the past two days, with the Vikings defense getting pressure on Dalton. He had plenty of time to complete quick throws in his limited stint on Friday.Cincinnatis starting defense was in for only one series that lasted three plays. Tackle Geno Atkins chased Teddy Bridgewater out of the pocket on one play, and then sacked him on the next. Those were the Vikings only plays in the opening quarter.Facing the second-team defense on the next series, Bridgewater threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Charles Johnson that completed a 96-yard drive. Bridgewater played two series and was 6 of 7 for 92 yards.A LONG WAY FOR NOTHINGAJ McCarron led the Bengals on a 22-play, 89-yard drive the second time Cincinnati got the ball. The drive lasted 12 minutes, 24 seconds and ended with the Bengals coming up short on fourth-and-1 at the 3.JUST ENOUGHMinnesotas Blair Walsh kicked a 51-yard field goal on the final play of the first half, the ball landing on the crossbar and bouncing through.ROOKIE WATCHVikings: First-round pick Laquon Treadwell, a receiver from Mississippi, had a team-high four catches for 41 yards.Bengals: Tyler Boyd made a nice, over-the-shoulder catch for a 40-yard gain that set up a touchdown, the only catch by the second-round pick. Nothing really too special about it, Boyd said. Just a basic route that weve been running a lot in practice. ... Undrafted Alex Erickson returned a punt 80 yards for a touchdown with 2:45 left.POSITION BATTLESVikings: CB Trae Waynes, Minnesotas first-round pick last year, started in place of the injured Terence Newman and had a solid showing. He broke up a long pass to Boyd, and quickly tackled receiver Cody Core after a catch, preventing a first down, one of his four tackles in the game. I feel a lot more comfortable going into my second season, Waynes said.Bengals: With their top two tight ends hurt -- Tyler Eifert and Tyler Kroft -- their reserves were reduced to blocking roles.INJURY UPDATEVikings: RB Adrian Peterson was among those held out. He suffered a hamstring pull while working out before the start of training camp.Bengals: RB Jeremy Hill hurt his left hand in the first quarter, had it examined and stayed on the sideline but didnt return.QUOTABLEVikings: Treadwell, on his first NFL game: It felt great to be out there. It was actually a lot of fun.Bengals: DE Carlos Dunlap, on the starting defenses limited time on the field: It was just three plays, but thats all we wanted to play because we knew the (starters) probably were going to get only one possession.---Online: AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Justin Reid Jersey .C. -- Chris Thorburn thinks one of the reasons the Winnipeg Jets have been successful under new coach Paul Maurice is that theyre playing together as a team. Andre Johnson Youth Jersey . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. http://www.texansrookiestore.com/Texans-Max-Scharping-Jersey/ . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. Cullen Gillaspia Womens Jersey . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. DOnta Foreman Womens Jersey . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., has nothing but good things to say about former U.S. marine Liz (Girlrilla) Carmouche ahead of their co-main event Wednesday on the UFCs "Fight for the Troops" televised card in Fort Campbell, Ky. West Coast coach Adam Simpson has been left with two headaches this week, and neither are an easy fix.Simpsons first headache is how to replace star ruckman Nic Naitanui - both this season and next.His second dilemma is finding a way to stop the Crows star-studded forward line in Friday nights crunch clash at Adelaide Oval.Scott Lycett will lead the ruck against the Crows, while the Eagles flew back-up options Mitch Brown and Jonathan Giles to Adelaide.Simpson says fans will have to wait until team selection on Thursday night before discovering what ruck combination hell use against the Crows.But finding a longer-term solution to replace Naitanui has also been on Simpsons mind.Simpson has brought forward a list-management meeting to discuss the clubs options.And although the third-year coach isnt willing to name names just yet, luring homesick GWS big man Rory Lobb to the Eagles could be a viable option.But for the moment Simpson is focusing on the Crows.Sixth-placed West Coast need to win Fridays match in order to secure a home final.If they lose, the Eagles will likely slip to seventh - consigning them to an away elimination final.Adelaide are the best attacking side in the competition, averaging 115 points per game.ddddddddddddEddie Betts has led the way with 65 goals, while Josh Jenkins (59), Taylor Walker (43), Tom Lynch (36) and Mitch McGovern (29) have also been important contributors.West Coast were sublime in nullifying Hawthorns midfield strengths last week, and Simpson knows theyll need to do a similar job if they are to cut off supply to Adelaides star-studded attack.Theyve got the toughest forward line in the comp to play against, Simpson said.Theyre all dangerous.Some experts have written off West Coasts flag chances in the wake of Naitanuis season-ending knee injury.But Simpson thinks otherwise, despite Naitanuis recent heroics against GWS and Hawthorn.Theres been a lot of negative talk on the back of Nic and the fact that our season is over and next season is over because hes not going to be available, Simpson said.I dont buy into that.Ill be really disappointed if we cant advance any further without Nic.Itd be ridiculous of me to think that we cant win without and our players dont believe that either.The Crows will be without suspended midfielder Rory Sloane for Fridays match. 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