Baltimore and Dallas take their 1-1 records to Rio de Janeiro on Sunday, meeting at the Maracanã in the NFL’s first regular-season game in Brazil’s second-largest city. Kickoff is set for 4:25 p.m. ET, with the Ravens aiming to restore their ground-game authority and the Cowboys trying to build on an explosive rebound against Washington.
Key takeaways
- The Maracanã, now holding a little more than 73,000 fans, will host the NFL after Brazil’s previous two regular-season games were staged in São Paulo.
- Derrick Henry enters Week 3 second in the league with 212 rushing yards and tied for first with four rushing touchdowns.
- Dallas has allowed 173.5 rushing yards per game, the NFL’s 30th-ranked mark, and opponents have converted 68.0% of third downs against the Cowboys.
- Dak Prescott has completed 78.3% of passes against the blitz but only 50% when pressured, while Baltimore owns a 43.8% pressure rate.
- Lamar Jackson has produced an NFL-best 229 passing yards off play-action, completing 13 of 18 attempts in those situations.
Ravens see a path through Dallas’ defense
The game is the league’s third consecutive season in Brazil, but it carries a different place on the schedule. The 2024 and 2025 Brazil matchups were played in Friday Week 1 standalone windows. This one lands in Sunday’s late-afternoon slate alongside Cardinals-49ers, Vikings-Buccaneers and Raiders-Saints.
Baltimore opened with a road blowout of Indianapolis before surrendering a second-half lead to New Orleans. Dallas suffered a division loss to the Giants in Week 1, then overwhelmed the Commanders at home. The Ravens are making only their third international appearance, while the Cowboys are playing outside the United States for just the second time.
The matchup could turn on whether Baltimore stays committed to Henry late in the game. The 6-foot-3, 252-pound running back received only five second-half carries in the Saints loss after New Orleans had trailed by 11 points before halftime.
Dallas, in Christian Parker’s first season as defensive coordinator, has yielded 391.5 total yards per game, ranking 29th in the NFL. The Cowboys also had trouble controlling New York’s Cam Skattebo and Jaxson Dart in the opener, allowing the Giants to drain the clock and limiting Dallas to two second-half offensive possessions.
Henry has already shown what he can do against the Cowboys. Two years ago, he posted 174 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns against Dallas, while Jackson added 87 rushing yards and a touchdown. A defense that has struggled against mobile quarterbacks now faces both Henry’s power and Jackson’s ability to escape the pocket.
Play-action is another concern for Dallas. Jackson has completed 13 of 18 throws following play fakes for 229 yards, and he has added 36 scramble yards on four play-action dropbacks. Dallas has permitted targets with at least three yards of separation on 12 of 17 play-action attempts, a 70.6% rate that ranks second-highest in the league. The Cowboys have also allowed an NFL-high 61 quarterback scramble yards on play-action plays, 24 more than any other team.
Jackson has run less often on designed calls this season, but his improvisational threat remains central to Baltimore’s offense. Dallas has emphasized staying “disciplined,” yet the Ravens have an opportunity to make the Cowboys defend multiple threats at once.
Prescott, Cowboys receivers face Baltimore’s pressure
Dallas showed its offensive ceiling against Washington, scoring on seven of eight possessions after managing only 244 total yards in the season-opening defeat at MetLife Stadium. Brian Schottenheimer’s offense will try to carry that efficiency into Rio against a Baltimore secondary that gave up significant production to Chris Olave, Juwan Johnson and Devaughn Vele last week.
Prescott will have CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens and tight end Jake Ferguson available as primary targets. Lamb and Pickens have supplied big-play potential, though each has had occasional drops during the opening weeks.
The deciding factor may be Baltimore’s ability to get Prescott off his spot. He has been highly effective when opponents blitz, posting a 78.3% completion rate that ranks third in the NFL. Under pressure, however, his completion percentage falls to 50%, his lowest such figure since 2019.
Baltimore has created pressure on 43.8% of opposing dropbacks, fifth in the league, and has pressured quarterbacks on 65.0% of third-down pass attempts, the top rate in the NFL. Jesse Minter’s defense will lean on Kyle Hamilton, Roquan Smith and Trey Hendrickson, with Nnamdi Madubuike potentially in line for his season debut.
For Dallas, avoiding third-and-long will be critical. If Prescott can keep the offense on schedule and operate before Baltimore’s pass rush takes over, the Cowboys have the personnel to test the Ravens’ coverage. If the Ravens control the line of scrimmage and force obvious passing situations, their trip to the Maracanã could become the response they need after letting Week 2 slip away.
