BALTIMORE (AP) So much for balance.

The Baltimore Ravens opened defense of their Super Bowl title yesterday with a performance reminiscent of last season, smothering the Chicago Bears" offense and getting just enough production from a one-dimensional attack in a 17-6 victory.

Operating with little backing from the running game, newcomer Elvis Grbac threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Sam Gash with 1:48 left in the third quarter to give the Ravens their first lead, 10-6.

Grbac, signed during the offseason to aid an offense that last season relied heavily on the running game, went 24-for-30 for 262 yards.

Indianapolis 45, New York Jets 24: Peyton Manning couldn"t wait to get into the NFL season. So he didn"t even bother to huddle.

The Colts, using a hurry-up offense for much of yesterday"s game, routed the Jets 45-24. Manning wasn"t at his sharpest, but he was plenty productive with 22 completions and two touchdowns, and Edgerrin James rushed for 135 yards.

Oakland 27, Kansas City 24: Even on his bad days, Rich Gannon beats Kansas City.

Overcoming two fumbles and an interception that was returned for a touchdown, Oakland"s resourceful quarterback set up Sebastian Janikowski"s 31-yard field goal with 15 seconds left, rallying the Raiders past Kansas City 27-24 yesterday.

The outcome spoiled Dick Vermeil"s first game as Kansas City"s coach.

Tampa Bay 10, Dallas 6 : The Tampa Bay Buccaneers changed offensive coordinators for the third time in three years, spent $28 million on a new quarterback and still haven"t solved their problems.

Brad Johnson completed plenty of passes and guided lots of long drives, yet failed to get the Bucs a touchdown until early in the fourth quarter. As usual, the defense bailed out the offense for a tougher-than-expected 10-6 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on yesterday.

Tampa Bay"s offensive overhaul gave fans high hopes for a Super Bowl run. The Bucs seemed primed to take a big first step against a rebuilding Dallas team it beat handily late last season.

It never happened. Although the Bucs kept the ball nearly twice as long as the Cowboys, Dallas led 6-3 when the fourth quarter began and drove toward a potential go-ahead touchdown twice in the closing minutes.

Carolina 24, Minnesota 13: Carolina Panthers quarterback Chris Weinke was good enough to win in his first NFL start with some help from the mistake-prone Minnesota Vikings.

Weinke threw the go-ahead touchdown pass to Muhsin Muhammad midway through the third quarter and ran for a score in the fourth, leading the Panthers to a 24-13 victory yesterday. Carolina"s Steve Smith returned the opening kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown.

The Vikings, playing their first regular-season game since the heatstroke death of lineman Korey Stringer in training camp, committed four turnovers, three on interceptions by Daunte Culpepper.