BALTIMORE (AP) — Following a lengthy training camp and five meaningless preseason outings Womens Tom Pyatt Jersey , the Baltimore Ravens finally got the chance to evaluate themselves in a game that counts.
Judging by their 47-3 rout of the Buffalo Bills on a rainy Sunday, the Ravens might be pretty darn good.
Then again, that might be tough to determine: The Bills looked absolutely awful.
Baltimore harassed and embarrassed Buffalo quarterback Nathan Peterman, and the Ravens got three touchdown passes from Joe Flacco in an opener worth savoring.
“Anytime you go get a win in Week 1, it’s great,” Flacco said. “Anytime you have a performance like we did, it’s great. We just have to make sure we build on this.”
Flacco’s TD passes were distributed to each of the three new receivers Baltimore added during the offseason to enhance a lackluster passing attack.
The 11-year veteran went 25 for 34 for 236 yards before being replaced in the third quarter by rookie Lamar Jackson, who did little more than hand off the ball after entering with a 40-0 lead.
Making their debut under defensive coordinator Don Martindale, the Ravens held Buffalo to 33 yards and no first downs in going up 26-0 at the half.
“Whatever they threw at us, we were able to answer,” linebacker Terrell Suggs said.
LeSean McCoy finished with 22 yards on seven carries and the Bills had 70 yards passing.
“LeSean McCoy is a threat. You have to start with that,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “Then you have to get to the quarterback and make him throw quick. That’s what our guys were able to do today.”
Making his third NFL start, Peterman went 5 for 18 for 24 yards and two interceptions for a quarterback rating of 0.0.
After Baltimore followed two Buffalo miscues with a pair of touchdowns for a 40-0 lead, coach Sean McDermott turned to rookie Josh Allen, who went 6 for 15 for 74 yards in Buffalo’s most lopsided defeat since a 56-10 loss to New England in November 2007.
“Obviously Jake Guentzel Jersey Kids , it wasn’t a good showing,” Peterman said. “We’ve got to do a lot better, starting with me.”
There’s a quarterback controversy brewing in Buffalo. Asked about a possible change in starters, McDermott replied, “I’m going to look at everything. … It’s too early to go one way or another.”
If that was Buffalo’s only problem, it might be easier to overcome.
“We need to focus more on the entire team, not just the quarterback,” receiver Zay Jones said. “Offensive line, running backs, wide receivers, defense. We have to do better.”
Baltimore had six sacks and limited Buffalo to 153 yards.
The Ravens and Bills both finished 9-7 last year, but Buffalo won the tiebreaker and earned its first playoff berth since 1999. Since then, however, the Bills sent quarterback Tyrod Taylor to Cleveland and had to replace two starting offensive linemen.
The new-look Bills were not very pretty.
Buffalo won the opening coin toss, deferred until the second half and subsequently offered little resistance while Baltimore mounted a 10-play drive that ended with an 8-yard touchdown run by Alex Collins.
Baltimore quickly added a 7-yard touchdown pass from Flacco to John Brown Andrew Ladd Jersey , who was signed as a free agent after playing with Arizona last year.
A 51-yard punt return by rookie Janarion Grant set up a field goal in the second quarter, and Baltimore added another field goal after an interception by Tony Jefferson in Buffalo territory.
Michael Crabtree made a tippy-toe catch in the back corner of the end zone for a 12-yard TD late in the half, and Willie Snead scored on a 13-yard catch to make it 33-0 in the third quarter.
Crabtree was signed in March after a three-year run with Oakland, and Snead was secured as a restricted free agent from New Orleans.
SPREAD THE WEALTH
To get touchdowns from each of their new receivers was gratifying to Harbaugh, who hopes his team can end a three-year playoff drought.
“To see Joe spread the ball around like that, and to see all the guys step up and play plays was the thing I’m most excited about,” the coach said.
INJURIES
Bills: CB Taron Johnson left with a shoulder injury and did not return.
ROOKIE WATCH
Bills: Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is the first Bills rookie with a sack in the season opener since 2002 and first with a forced fumble since 2013.
Ravens: Before entering in the third quarter, Jackson was used sporadically — mostly as a decoy, although he did run once (for no gain) and throw an incomplete pass.
UP NEXT
Buffalo opens its home schedule against the Los Angeles Chargers next Sunday afternoon.
Baltimore travels to Cincinnati for a Thursday night matchup between AFC North rivals.
The Denver Broncos don't put their full pads on until Tuesday but they're already a banged-up bunch.
Newly signed receiver Corey "Philly" Brown is in concussion protocol after hitting his head in the weight room and when the Broncos put on shoulder pads for the first time Monday several players hobbled off.
"Football is played in pads, so to put the pads on and watch the guys bang a little bit is always fun," coach Vance Joseph said. "For the running game, and obviously stopping the run, the pads are critical."
Left tackle Garett Bolles and inside linebacker Brandon Marshall were among the casualties Monday.
"Garett Bolles took a shot to the chin. He's being evaluated for a head injury," Joseph said, adding that Marshall "had a minor wrist injury. He's OK."
Cornerback Marcos Rios sat out with a sore hip and tight end Jeff Heuerman sat out with a sore knee Ondrej Kase Jersey , which Joseph said was strictly precautionary.
The Broncos are also dealing with second-year wide receiver Carlos Henderson, who failed to report to training camp while dealing with what the team calls a family situation.
Although Joseph has said it's up to Henderson whether his career will continue, several members of the organization are keeping in touch with their absent teammate.
"Lots of guys have called Carlos. (Wide Receivers) Coach Zach (Azzanni) has been calling him, I've been calling Carlos, his teammates have been," Joseph said. "Obviously, he's having some family issues he's working through and it's really his timeline.
"He can return any time he gets ready to return. It's on him, but his guys are supporting him, the coaches are supporting him. So we're looking forward to having him back."
Henderson was a third-round draft pick out of Louisiana Tech last year but he missed his rookie season with a hand injury. He missed much of the offseason program this year with a pulled hamstring and is a long-shot to even make the 53-man roster if he does return.
Joseph said he has no timeline for Henderson to get back.
"We've had some conversations about other things than football. He's not ready for football right now, so we're not talking about football a lot," Joseph said. "We're doing a good job as a team of checking on him on a daily basis."
Things should ratchet up overall Tuesday when the Broncos also wear their thigh pads.
"Any time we're full pads, it's like game day," Joseph said. "Every pad's on, mouth guard, chin straps buckled Devin Shore Jersey , so it'll look different as far as what they're wearing, but the practice shouldn't look that much different as far as the physical part of it."
Nose tackle Domata Peko, for one, appreciated finally getting to do some hitting in the trenches Monday.
"That what it's about, you know? We don't play without shoulder pads, so when you get them on that's when you really get to get real physical and do your job," Peko said. "Especially up front. In the trenches, you've got to have the pads on and feel that contact to see where you're at and sharpen each other up.
"It was a good first day of shells today. They call it shells, and then full pads tomorrow, but in the trenches, every time we put the pads on it's pretty much full pads. It felt good today."