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Despite it being a road game, the Baltimore Ravens are the defending Super Bowl Champions and therefore kickoff the opening of the regular season. Week one has them returning to the scene of the crime, where they shocked the Denver Broncos in the Divisional Playoffs on their way to Super Bowl XLVII.
Obviously, this game will be looming large as the biggest one of the weekend, at least in the minds of Baltimore and Denver fans. However, looking around the weekend, you will find a plethora of tough match-ups to get excited to see, once the Ravens game is history.
There are a bunch on divisional match-ups, including the New England Patriots at the Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints, New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (Sunday Night Football) and the Philadelphia Eagles at the Washington Redskins (Monday Night Football).
In addition, a few other games could define the favorites in each conference, including the Cincinnati Bengals at Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers at the San Francisco 49ers and the Houston Texans at the San Diego Chargers (Monday Night Football.
A little over four months remain until the season opener, but with the draft less than a week away and the schedule to be dissected and cross-examined, it's a great time to be a Ravens fan and a lot to look forward to in 2013.