After getting their first win of the season against the Washington Commanders, the Dallas Cowboys now head somewhere completely different.
Sunday’s Week 3 game against the Baltimore Ravens will be played at the famous Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Dallas is officially the home team, although there obviously won’t be the normal advantages that come with playing at AT&T Stadium. What the Cowboys will have instead is momentum.
Dallas enters Brazil 1-1 after a convincing 37-20 victory over
Washington, while Baltimore is also 1-1 after letting a second-half lead disappear in a 24-17 home loss to the New Orleans Saints. And there are plenty of reasons for Cowboys fans to believe Dallas can leave South America above .500. Let’s start with the most obvious one.
Dak Prescott is coming to Brazil absolutely red hot. Prescott completed 26 of 31 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns against Washington. He didn’t throw an interception and finished with a 143.8 passer rating. The performance also moved Prescott past Tony Romo for the most touchdown passes in Cowboys history. Prescott now has 249 career touchdown passes after one of the best games he has played in recent memory. That is exactly the sort of quarterback performance Dallas will need against Baltimore.
The good news is that the Ravens just showed that their pass defense can be attacked. Saints quarterback Tyler Shough completed 27 of 34 passes for 252 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions against Baltimore. New Orleans wasn’t relying on constant deep throws either. It consistently moved the chains with accurate passes underneath and in the middle of the field. That style suits what Dallas did extremely well against Washington. Prescott was accurate, decisive and spread the ball around. When the Commanders tried to take something away, another Cowboys weapon became available.
None was more dangerous than CeeDee Lamb. Lamb caught eight passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns against Washington. It was his first 100-yard game of the season and another reminder of how difficult Dallas can be to defend when Prescott and Lamb are in rhythm.
Baltimore has just watched another number one receiver cause problems. Chris Olave caught eight passes for 86 yards and a touchdown for New Orleans. The Saints also got 66 receiving yards from tight end Juwan Johnson and another 64 from Devaughn Vele. That should immediately catch Dallas’ attention. Because stopping Lamb isn’t the only problem Baltimore has to solve.
Jake Ferguson is coming off a two-touchdown game. Ferguson caught all four passes thrown his way against Washington for 43 yards, with two of those receptions ending in touchdowns.
Through one afternoon, Dallas showed exactly why defending this passing game can become difficult. Lamb scored twice. Ferguson scored twice. Prescott barely put the ball in danger. If Baltimore decides it has to give Lamb extra attention, Ferguson should again find space underneath and through the middle. The Cowboys also have George Pickens available on the outside, meaning Baltimore cannot simply build its entire coverage around stopping Lamb.
Baltimore’s defense struggled badly to get off the field against New Orleans. The Saints converted eight of their 15 third-down attempts and went a perfect two-for-two on fourth down.
Baltimore’s pass coverage and pass rush failed to work together properly when New Orleans moved toward a quicker passing attack. That is something Schottenheimer and Prescott should be looking at closely this week. Get the ball out quickly. Make Baltimore defend the full width of the field. Let Lamb, Ferguson and Pickens create yards after the catch. And, most importantly, keep Prescott away from obvious passing situations where Baltimore’s rushers can attack.
Then there is what happened to the Ravens after halftime. Baltimore led New Orleans 14-6 at the break. The Ravens then lost the second half conceding 18 and only scoring three. They were eventually shut out over the final 18 minutes and allowed New Orleans to drive for the winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter. That matters because Dallas showed the exact opposite quality last Sunday.
When Washington threatened to get back into the game, the Cowboys answered. Prescott kept making plays. Brandon Aubrey kept adding points. Jaishawn Barham forced an important fumble. And Dallas eventually turned a competitive divisional game into a comfortable 17-point victory.
One team showed it could pull away. The other just showed it could be caught. Baltimore’s inability to finish the Saints game gives Dallas every reason to believe it can stay patient even if things don’t begin perfectly in Brazil.
The Ravens are also dealing with several injuries worth monitoring. Their biggest concern is Zay Flowers.
Flowers exploded for 150 receiving yards and a touchdown in Baltimore’s Week 1 win over Indianapolis but suffered a hamstring injury. He missed the Saints game completely. His status for Dallas remains something to follow throughout the week; he missed Wednesday’s practice.
Baltimore is already without rookie receiver Ja’Kobi Lane, who was placed on injured reserve after undergoing wrist surgery. That means Baltimore could again enter a game without two important receivers if Flowers cannot return. Flowers’ absence clearly changed the Baltimore offense against New Orleans.
The Ravens also have questions on their offensive line. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley entered Week 2 carrying a toe injury and then left the Saints game during the third quarter. He did not play in the fourth. That’s an important situation for Dallas to watch.
Defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike has yet to play this season because of a neck injury, while linebacker Teddye Buchanan has also yet to make his 2026 debut. Both practiced on Wednesday. Cornerback T.J. Tampa has gone on injured reserve. Star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson is playing through a broken finger with heavy protection around his hand.
Now let’s talk about the international series. This will be the first NFL regular-season game ever played in Rio de Janeiro, and Dallas is the designated home team. Talking to folks over in Brazil who cover the Cowboys, they’ve told us that the country has a massive Cowboys following and fan base, which will make this game feel like a home game away from home. And for the Cowboys, they don’t have much international regular-season history, but what they do have is perfect.
Their previous regular-season game outside the United States came in London in 2014, when Dallas beat Jacksonville 31-17. So the Cowboys enter Brazil with a 1-0 record in international regular-season games.
