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Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco threw to some of his new wide receivers and tight ends at a public park near the team's practice facility.Even though training camp was more than a week away Baltimore Ravens Hats , the Ravens were eager to get back to work. A group of local kids playing pickup football eagerly approached the players, which added to the excitement of the upcoming season.The extra practice time paid off as there were few drops among the receivers on the first day of camp Thursday. Flacco looked revitalized and was crisp, zipping balls downfield with pinpoint precision."Joe does seem charged up," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "I do see excitement. He does seem to like his receivers. He's motivated and wants to go to work."Last season, the Ravens had the league's 29th-ranked passing offense.As a result, general manager Ozzie Newsome hoped to boost the attack with the addition of free-agent wide receivers Michael Crabtree, John Brown and Willie Snead. Baltimore also added a pair of tight ends — Hayden Hurst and Mark Andrews — in the first three rounds of the draft. Andrews missed the opening day of practice because of a soft-tissue injury.The receivers have been impressed with Flacco's arm strength and his willingness to listen to new ideas. The workout in the park proved to be a solid bonding experience."It was fun," Snead said. "It was taking the stuff we did in OTAs and minicamp and put it all together out there on the field, just one-on-one with the quarterbacks. That type of time together is beneficial, just like later down the stretch in the season. It's just being on the same page with different routes and knowing the receiver and the quarterback and what he's thinking and what I'm thinking."Five Ravens began camp on the physically-unable-to-perform list — guard Marshal Yanda (ankle), cornerback Jaylen Hill (knee), linebacker LB Bam Bradley (ACL), tight end Vince Mayle (undisclosed) and receiver Quincy Adeboyejo (leg). Players on the PUP list can be activated at any time during training camp. However, if the players are still on the list by the regular-season opener, they cannot play in the first six games.Despite the missing players Baltimore Ravens Womens Hoodie , optimism is running high about ending a three-year playoff drought. The Ravens were able to open training camp a week earlier this year because they are playing the Chicago Bears in the annual Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 2. The rookies reported July 11 and veterans arrived one week later.Coach John Harbaugh plans to use the extra time wisely, particularly with giving the veteran players some time off."In the big picture, you have one more week to work," Harbaugh said. "It gives us an opportunity to have more of an acclimation period, especially for the veteran guys and also really for the whole team. It gives us an opportunity over the long haul to get more work in, but also spread the work out a little more and give us a little more recovery, which would be beneficial."The Ravens are looking to be equally adept on the other side of the ball with new defensive coordinator Don "Wink" Martindale, who took over for Dean Pees. The players are already lauding Martindale's approach and expect to be a dominant unit.Linebacker C.J. Mosley, who is in the final year of his rookie contract, said Martindale's scheme gives the players an opportunity to be "more diverse.""A lot of the plays stayed the same," Mosley said. "We might have changed the verbiage here and there. But for the most part, it's been pretty much the same. Guys are learning the different positions so we can be more versatile." Football fans had their jerseys on and their wallets open as pro football season arrived in places where sports betting is newly legal.New Jersey won a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case in May that clears the way for all 50 states to offer legal sports betting if they choose.There was an hourlong wait in line to place bets at Atlantic City's Ocean Resort Casino as kickoff approached Sunday.Chris Matthews of Clementon, New Jersey, put $50 each on the Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers Womens Customized Baltimore Ravens Jerseys , reasoning that all three have strong defenses. Their defense was good last year, even though they didn't win a game, and they were on TV this preseason, and I think that has them fired up," he said, referring to the HBO football themed series "Hard Knocks" that featured the Browns."The Patriots are angry they lost the Super Bowl last year, so they'll come out strong today, and the Packers have Aaron Rodgers back this year after being hurt last year."Robert Stovall of Rahway, New Jersey, put $100 on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Clad in a throwback Keyshawn Johnson jersey, he rattled off statistics and predictions for almost the entire Bucs roster in rationalizing a $100 bet on them to win despite being 10-point underdogs.Phil Henderson of Mahwah, New Jersey, put $500 on the other side of that game, picking the New Orleans Saints to win. It was his first legal bet on football, and he said he likes doing so with a regulated casino better than with a bookie www.ravenscheapshops.com , whose offer of credit can easily get gamblers in over their heads."The money's all up front here; you know what you're betting and you're not running an account or a tab, losing money you don't have," he said.Other states where sports betting is currently being offered include Nevada, Delaware, Mississippi, and West Virginia.Bruce Deifik owns the Ocean Resort Casino, and was encouraged to see how full the new sports book was on Sunday. He said the casino is already seeing a ripple effect from people who come primarily to bet on football, but then stay for lunch or dinner and drinks, go to the spa or play in a golf simulator."In terms of bringing people into contact with other amenities 鈥?playing in the casino, food and beverage, maybe getting a hotel room and staying over, this is a big deal," he said.Sports betting took in $40.6 million in wagers in New Jersey in July, the first full month it was legal.Follow Wayne Parry at ://WayneParryAC