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BALTIMORE -- The Baltimore Ravens opened the 2016 NFL season with a reunion of sorts.Six players returning from injuries joined together to contribute to a team that went 5-11 last year -- in part because of their absence.Quarterback Joe Flacco (knee), running back Justin Forsett (broken arm), receiver Steve Smith (torn Achilles tendon), tight end Dennis Pitta (hip), wide receiver Breshad Perriman (knee) and linebacker Terrell Suggs all played a role in the Ravens 13-7 victory over Buffalo on Sunday.It felt good seeing all those faces out there that we didnt see at the end of the year last year, Forsett said. It was good to be back there with the boys.The most important contributor was Flacco, who had a run of 137 straight starts before tearing his ACL and MCL in a win over St. Louis last November. Following limited action in the preseason, the nine-year veteran looked sharp in going 23 for 34 for 258 yards against the Bills.It felt great, it has felt great, Flacco said after the game. I think it held up well. I was really happy with how it went.Smith intended to retire last season until his injury. Now, after skipping the preseason, he returned to grab a team-high five passes.Im good, feeling real good, he said after catching five passes for 19 yards.Pitta hadnt played in a regular season game since 2014 before catching three passes for 39 yards.I stayed healthy, which is important, he said. I am excited to keep it rolling.Perriman, out with a knee injury all of last year, had one catch for 35 yards in his belated NFL debut.Really a dream come true for me, the teams first round pick in 2015 said. Words cant really explain it all. Im just very happy.Other things we learned from the Bills-Ravens opener:TIGHT SPOT: Because the Ravens took away Buffalos deep game, quarterback Tyrod Taylor found it difficult to utilize his tight ends, especially Charles Clay -- a frequent target over the middle during preseason. When Taylor scrambled, his tight ends were reduced to blockers instead of targets. Clay finished with three catches for 40 yards, but one of them was a 33-yard reception.NEWCOMERS SHINE: Two of the Ravens free agent additions during the offseason contributed heavily to the victory. Safety Eric Weddle coordinated a backfield that limited the Bills to 111 yards passing, and wide receiver Mike Wallace caught a 66-yard touchdown to give Baltimore a 10-0 lead in the second quarter. It was a really easy throw; nobody was back there, Flacco said. He did a great job beating the guy with his speed.SCRAMBLED PLANS: The loss of left tackle Cordy Glenn to an ankle injury early in the second quarter didnt help matters any for a Buffalo offense that finished with only 160 yards. It starts with protection, coach Rex Ryan said. We have the ability on the outside. At times, protection held extremely well. At other times, I thought they had outstanding push against us.STRINGING HIM ALONG: Though running back LeSean McCoy picked up 58 yards on 16 carries, Baltimores linebackers and defensive backs made it tough on him with their secondary pursuit. Several times, the Ravens were able to push McCoy laterally on a run, preventing him from turning the corner and making a big gain.Buffalo converted only three of 13 third downs and averaged only 2.7 yards per rush.They really did well on third downs, McCoy said. I had a lousy day, especially in the first half, on third-down protection. They had a nice scheme going on that gave us some fits.GUTSY CALL: Ravens coach John Harbaugh took a field goal off the board after the Bills were called for leverage, a 15-yard penalty that gave Baltimore the ball on the Buffalo 13 with 7:38 remaining. Frank Fabra Colombia Jersey . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Farid Diaz Colombia Jersey . To the surprise of many, it isnt the Wolverines but their in-state rivals the Michigan State Spartans. http://www.nationalcolombiafootball.com/carlos-bacca-colombia-jersey/ . "We have always prided ourselves on the way we play defence. Having two big pieces back is going to be a key for us moving forward for years to come," said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. Fredy Guarin Colombia Jersey . LOUIS -- Cardinals cleanup hitter Allen Craig says hes recovered from a foot injury and ready to be put on St. David Ospina Jersey .4 million title. Ryan Riess emerged with the title after a session in which he started behind, but used expert skill to gather the chips to his side amid the unpredictability of no-limit Texas Hold em. Riess put his final opponent Jay Farber all-in with an Ace-King. ST. PAUL, Minn -- If it were up to Team USA architect Dean Lombardi, the players who make up the American roster that will compete in the upcoming World Cup of Hockey would have more than a short training camp to bond.Theres some jealousy in the general managers voice when he points out the fact that the 1996 World Cup-champion American team had a month to golf, bond and come together before winning it all.Thats not the case this time around. Its two frickin days, he said. Were not going to mess around.To help prepare, Team USAs management and coaching staff spent time in Minnesota before camps finalizing plans to try to repeat the success of 96. At the conclusion of the meetings, Lombardi chatted with ESPN.coms Craig Custance about the upcoming tournament:ESPN.com: What was the focus of the meetings in St. Paul?Lombardi: Obviously, with the five or six coaches, we had a couple of things to do. One, we gave them an overview on what our philosophy was in terms of selecting the team. As we all know, there are almost no wrong answers when you put together a team with this much talent.I thought it was good for [Team USA head coach] John [Tortorellas] assistants to understand what our thinking was. And then the second thing was Johns area -- putting a team of top players together. Its critical that guys accept their roles. Also, when you essentially have an All-Star coaching staff it can be beneficial -- or you can end up with a gong show.Its the same thing as your team. It was important that [Tortorella] designate the [coaching] roles and make their responsibilities clear. Each guy started putting that together.ESPN.com: You mentioned your philosophy in putting together this roster. Theres been criticism of how you built this team ...Lombardi: When isnt there?ESPN.com: Yeah, but you took on more risk than others in some of your player selections. Does that add more pressure on you?Lombardi: Using 96 as a model, its no different than putting together an NHL team. We made it very clear -- all the work I did prior to it, going through it last August in those preliminary meetings -- that this had to be about team and identity.?So much went into this that you cant begin to explain, but that said you have to stay within a certain theme and philosophy. We could have gone another direction philosophically; I just come back to the word identity. I thought [identity] was critical if we were going to win this thing.?This was a lot harder than I thought. Forget the size of the staff we had -- we had a lot of scouts out there. Youre splitting hairs. It really had to be about team because there were so many good players and there wasnt a lot of separation.dddddddddddd.It was a great experience. I didnt think it was going to be this difficult. We had to micromanage. We got down to the final one, we sat tighter and it was so close. You come back -- who fits right in? Whats the character? Will they fit into the team? That was always your tiebreaker.ESPN.com: How they fit in with the team was the tiebreaker?Lombardi: Yeah. Thats the other thing that was frustrating. The team in 96 was together for 30 days. We tried to do [team-bonding] things and werent allowed to because of the union. We cant afford to waste time. You cant have any maintenance. Its too short a tournament. You have no preparation.ESPN.com: Theres a belief that you built this team specifically to beat Canada. Is that a fair conclusion?Lombardi: Yeah. I mean, theyre the best. Who are we kidding? You want to be politically correct? No, theyre the best. Its like right now, youve got to beat the [Pittsburgh] Penguins. Thats just the way it is. There are really good teams but theyre clearly always the favorite going in. So, yeah.ESPN.com: So how big is the gap right now between Canada and the U.S.?Lombardi: Its kind of funny. You look at the young guys coming -- it goes in cycles ... I think there are some areas, without getting into it, why you had to go back to team and identity [when picking players]. A lot of people, the whole idea, thats coming with the center ice. One of the things we asked ourselves ... who is the top [center]? You know? Now you are seeing a few coming like Jack Eichel.ESPN.com: But now you dont have access to the top young American centers because theyre playing for Team North America.Lombardi: Yeah. Even Canada went through a period where its No. 1 defenseman since Chris Pronger wasnt there, and then boom, Drew Doughty and Alex Pietrangelo come along. Back then, the Americans had the [top] defensemen, if you looked at it closely.It goes in cycles. The fairly obvious biggest thing is the middle doesnt have the top [guys]. That said, a guy like Joe Pavelski?is one of the top players. He finally got his recognition this year. If you were playing against him, you know how good this guy is. Its not totally fair to say this guy is not a No. 1 center.ESPN.com:?He has to be your captain, right?Lombardi: John [Tortorella] is going to take care of that. You can try to pump it out of him.Editors note: Joe Pavelski was named Team USAs captain on Wednesday. ' ' '