3 Dallas Cowboys Facing Make-or-Break Game in Week 3 vs. Baltimore Ravens

The Dallas Cowboys will take their talents to South America in Week 3 when they meet the Baltimore Ravens in Brazil.

The Cowboys are coming off their first win of the 2026 campaign against the Washington Commanders, and the Ravens are looking to rebound off a Week 2 loss to the New Orleans Saints.

Ahead of the matchup, here are three Cowboys who have the most riding on this contest against the Ravens.

Dee Winters

Jaishawn Barham got the start for the Cowboys in Week 2 with DeMarvion Overshown sidelined and the rookie was excellent, which continues what has been a strong start to his career, as evidenced by his overall (84.8), run defense (80) and coverage (83.4) Pro Football Focus grades, which rank third, fifth and seventh among linebackers in the NFL.

Meanwhile, Winters continues to be underwhelming for Dallas, with the veteran posting grades of 43.5 overall, 41.9 in run defense and 52.5 in coverage, which rank 64th, 67th and 51st out of the 71 qualified linebackers across the league.

Head coach Brian Schottenheimer said on Wednesday that Overshown has a "low probability" to play this week, but the expectation has been he won't miss more than two games.

Winters better step up or he could find himself in a backup role once Overshown gets back.

Shavon Revel

Revel has been playing third fiddle for the Cowboys at cornerback this season, with the second-year defender playing less snaps than both DaRon Bland and Cobie Durant on the outside.

But that could change this week because Durant is dealing with a hamstring injury that leaves him in danger of not playing. If Durant sits, Revel will be thrust into a major role opposite Bland.

And if Revel wants to show the Cowboys he deserves a bigger role moving forward, he's got to play up to snuff in Week 3.

Even if Revel plays great on Sunday, he isn't going to jump Durant on the depth because the veteran has played well this season. He could, however, jump Bland on the depth chart at some point.

Christian Parker

Parker is back on this list for a second straight week because we are still waiting for a breakout game for the defense.

Sure, the Cowboys gave up 20 points against the Commanders, and that was an improvement from Week 1. However, that was done with a lot of smoke and mirrors.

The Commanders should've had two more touchdowns last week, with officials messing up a call on one should-be touchdown and Washington barely missing another on a trick play that would've been successful with a better pass.

Adding to that, the Commanders moved the ball way too easily both on the ground and through the air, and Jayden Daniels was giving the defense fits with his legs before he got hurt.

There are also questions about if Parker's scheme is a good fit for Quinnen Williams, who has been OK but not great over two games.

Parker is going to have a very tough test against a potent Ravens offense in Week 3 that is going to tell us a lot about where he and Dallas' defense stands. If Parker and the Cowboys fail to pass the test, faith in the Dallas defensive coordinator will wane even more.

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