The Cowboys’ week 3 road to Baltimore is really a trip to Brazil.
Dallas is set to leave for Rio de Janeiro later this week to finish its preparation for Sunday afternoon’s matchup with the Ravens, a historic game that will be played at Maracanã Stadium, officially Estádio Jornalista Mário Filho. The Cowboys are the designated home team, and this will be the first NFL game ever held in Rio.
The travel alone makes this one stand out. Dallas’ 2026 schedule includes 27,980 air miles, which ranks fourth in the league, and the round trip to Rio accounts for more than 33 percent of that total. The international portion of the trip covers 10,468 miles round trip.
That kind of travel has already become a league-wide talking point after the Los Angeles Rams struggled in the season opener in Australia following a 24-hour trip. The Brazil trip is not the same kind of burden, but the Cowboys still have to manage the effects of jet lag.
This will also be Dallas’ first regular-season International Series game since 2014, when it beat the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in London.
The Cowboys will spend the early part of the week in Frisco. They opened practice Tuesday evening with a light session at The Star, then will continue working Wednesday and Thursday afternoon before heading to Rio at about 8:00 p.m. local time Thursday night.
A nonstop flight from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport takes a little more than 10 hours, so Thursday night is the departure window. Dallas is scheduled to arrive Friday morning, then hold a light practice at the training facility of Brazilian soccer club CR Flamengo.
Saturday brings a walkthrough at Maracanã Stadium so the Cowboys can get familiar with the venue before Sunday’s kickoff, set for 5:25 p.m. local time, which is 4:25 p.m. ET and 3:25 p.m. CT.
Once the game is over Sunday night, Dallas will get right back on the plane and return to Fort Worth, with a Monday morning arrival. After that, the Cowboys will reset for another week of practice before heading to Houston for Week 4 against the Texans.
It’s a packed stretch, and Dallas will spend the next few days trying to keep everything on track.
In Other News...
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Jerry Jones is not buying the idea that the NFL is anywhere close to planting a permanent flag overseas, even as the league keeps leaning harder into its international push. The Cowboys owner said an international expansion team feels like a long way off, pushing back on the notion that Europe is ready to house an NFL franchise anytime soon.
Still, Jones was not dismissing the leagues global ambitions outright. The Cowboys are headed to Brazil for the NFLs first game in Rio de Janeiro, another sign of how far the sport has stretched beyond U.S. borders, and Jones acknowledged the complications that come with taking games abroad while still supporting the effort to grow the league. Roger Goodell has made clear he sees international teams as inevitable, with London viewed as the likeliest landing spot, leaving one of the NFLs most influential owners on the skeptical side of a debate that is only getting louder. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Face A Real Problem Ahead Of Rio Showdown With Cowboys
The NFLs first regular-season game in Rio de Janeiro is set to bring the Cowboys and Ravens to Maracan Stadium on Sept. 27, but the buildup has already taken on an unusual tone because of the playing surface. Heavy rain, heat and a packed soccer calendar have left the grass in poor condition, creating the kind of backdrop that can alter how a game unfolds before either team takes a snap.
For Dallas, the setting adds another layer to an early-season matchup that already matters, since both clubs enter at 1-1. The league plans to move ahead anyway, and the field is expected to be part of the story in a game that could look and feel very different from a typical September Sunday. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Defense Suddenly Has A Ravens Problem Fans Need To Watch
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Brian Schottenheimers updates only sharpened the concern. Overshown is a low-probability play because of a hamstring injury, Locke is working back from plantar fasciitis with a possible return within four weeks, and Durant is still rehabbing his own hamstring issue. Hooker, meanwhile, remains sidelined while recovering from a fractured forearm and is not expected back this week, leaving Dallas with more questions than answers as it tries to get its defense ready for Baltimore. [Read more 🡒]