Dallas Cowboys Media Gives First Look At Questionable Field Conditions In Rio

The Dallas Cowboys - Baltimore Ravens game in Week 3 has been overshadowed by field condition concerns at Rio's Maracana Stadium.

Banners of Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton and Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Ceedee Lamb at Maracana Stadium | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In a matter of hours, the Dallas Cowboys will be taking the field at Maracana Stadium for the first-ever NFL game in Rio de Janeiro against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday afternoon.

Leading up to kickoff, much of the chatter has been about the field conditions the iconic stadium, which is officially known as Estádio Jornalista Mário Filho. In an effort to fix the immediate concerns that the field would be loose, patchy, and lead to excessive slipping, some special equipment was brought in to restitch the surface.

Maracana and the league called on the GrassMaster Stitch Machine to do some heavy duty work leading up to kickoff, and now we're getting a first-look at how the playing surface has responded ahead of Sunday's game.

The Cowboys and media members made the trip to Maracana Stadium on Saturday morning for a little walkthrough and tour of the grounds, and began sharing videos on social media from the field level.

First-Look At Maracana Stadium Field Conditions For Cowboys-Ravens Game

A closer look at the entire field the Cowboys and Ravens will be playing on tomorrow. The league did work to reinforce the surface with stitching this week. pic.twitter.com/9jneg2fn4P

— Joseph Hoyt (@JoeJHoyt) September 26, 2026

At a quick glance, the field conditions look greatly improved from what was going viral on social media in previous days, which led to a lengthy statement from the NFL Players Association.

"The best athletes in the world should be playing on surfaces that meet the same standard of excellence we expect from them every week," JC Tretter, who is executive director of the NFL Players Association, said in the statement.

Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram was among the media members in attendance and noted, "Grass is a little high, but there will be a lot of doctoring going on between now and kickoff."

The field maintainance is ongoing.

Checking in from the Maracana pic.twitter.com/XvpQpwXn2D

— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) September 26, 2026

It's going to be interesting to see how all of the prep from the league and organizers pays off once the game begins, but players will be prepared for whatever comes their way.

Let's just hope that the playing surface can hold up enough to avoid become the main talking point after the final whistle blows.

Kickoff between the Cowboys and Ravens is set for 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday evening, with Jim Nantz on play-by-play alongside analyst J.J. Watt, while Tracy Wolfson provides updates from the sideline. You know what they say: get your popcorn ready, because one way or another, history will be made.

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