The Dallas Cowboys have been largely sequestered in their hotel at the Grand Hyatt since landing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Friday ahead of Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens.

They took a trip to the soccer club Flamengo’s facility on Friday to stretch their legs after a roughly 10-hour flight that took them 5,200 miles from home and on Saturday they walked around city’s historic Maracana Stadium for about an hour.

Outside of that, they have been landlocked at the hotel. No trips to the beach. No outside excursions. No visits with family. They have been prohibited from leaving the hotel, largely out to keep them out of danger.

But’s also for the team to stay focused on the main thing. This is a business trip for the Cowboys.

They came to win and then head hom.

“It’s a little bit different from other road games,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “We were very up front with the guys early on. You’re not going to have the free time to do what you’d normally do.”

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott said the team is embracing the business-trip mentality.

He will come back to sight see another time.

“It is a place I want to return to as a tourist,” Prescott said. “This is a first for the majority of the team. What we are looking for is a win.”

Five Things to Watch

1. The Cowboys defense must find a way to stop the run first and foremost against the Ravens and star back Derrick Henry. The Cowboys have been one of worst teams in the NFL against the run through the first two games of the season. And Henry will be a load to bring down. “You see the things that Derrick does to create, and it’s very specific,” Schottenheimer said. “It’s lower-body power and strength. It’s all ground-based because that’s the way he plays the game. So you have to be able to get your cleats in the ground. Incredible player. What we have to do is we have to create knock-back. “Our front has to play really, really well because if he’s getting seams and buildup speed and they’re knocking us laterally, unfortunately, those seams are big and safeties and linebackers just have a hard time getting him on the ground by themselves.” Dallas is allowing 173.5 rushing yards per game through two weeks, which ranks 30th in the NFL. The Cowboys have also allowed 391.5 total yards per game.
2. When Schottenheimer is talking about his front needing to play well, he means big-money defensive tackle Quinnen Williams needs to start dominating at the line of scrimmage and living up to his contract. Williams has been solid through two games. But he has not been a difference maker. It has caused many to wonder of the scheme to the team is playing under new defensive coordinator Christian Parker is the right fit for Williams. Williams has tallied seven total tackles, a forced fumble and two quarterback hits through the first two games of this season. “I think it’s a great fit. I understand the question,” Schottenheimer said. “I think right now we haven’t played well enough on defense, but when Quinnen Williams knows he’s getting singled, I think that’s a good thing for us.” I think it’s more of just it being new to the system. He’s played in this system before at Alabama. “There’s certainly some of the best defensive tackles in the league, which we think Quinnen is in this system. So I think it’s more of Quinnen’s a great player and he’s going to find his way in the system.”
3. The biggest concern heading into Sunday’s game as been about the field conditions. NFL Field Czar Nick Pappas spoke with reporters on Saturday and said the field passed all the tests. Synthetic fibers were also installed in the grass to add stability to the playing surface via the rassmaster Stitching machine. The field was still soft on Saturday and there will likely be divots. The concern now is mostly about player performance than player safety, per NFLPA executive JC Tretter, who posted a statement to X. The Cowboys players have been instructed to wear cleats with 7 studs.
4. Receiver George Pickens has yet to break out through the first two games of the season, as he has seen double coverage. It has allowed fellow receiver CeeDee Lamb to shine. Lamb has 13 catches for for 197 yards and three touchdowns while Pickens has 9 catches for 68 yards. Pickens is not concerned. “I’d definitely say team for me I feel like I’ve been doing great,” Pickens said. “Like my whole game. Some people just look at certain parts of my game. But my whole game I feel like has been great.” He knowsn his day is coming. It could come against the Ravens suspect secondary. The Cowboys aren’t worried about Pickens slow start. “George will get his,” owner Jerry Jones said. “There’s no doubt in my mind that when the dust has settled he will absolutely be right there with the top reception leaders in the league in my mind.”
5. The Cowboys have struggled to contain two mobile quarterbacks through the first two games in Jaxon Dart and Jayden Daniels. Now they face Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens. Jackson may be the best dual threat quarterback in the history of the NFL. He is certainly trending in that direction with two NFL MVP’s already do his resume. “That’s a bad matchup,” owner Jerry Jones said. “We got our work cut out for us. It’s a rough one,” Jones said. “We’ll be ready for them, but they’re a handful.” Schottenheimer said they’re coaching defensive ends to work toward Lamar Jackson once they get up field and reach the depth of the QB. They’re prioritizing compressing the pocket. Cowboys have allowed most rushing yards by quarterbacks this season with both Jaxson Dart and Jayden Daniels having success in scramble situations. Jackson has the most rushing yard by a quarterback in NFL history. “I think getting him on the ground is the biggest deal. You’d like to get the sack, but I think if you affect him, hopefully you’re making him make poor decisions,” Schottenheimer said. “He’s loose with the ball. Maybe he throws the ball in a double coverage. “We’ve gotten to the point where if you move him off the spot, sometimes they become more dangerous, which is why we have to be better at containing. He’s looking at the film. He’s seeing the seams that we’ve created and given to Jaxson Dart and Jayden Daniels, and he’s going to be aware of that. But this is a new week. It’s a different deal. We’ve got some different things that we’re looking at that we kind of like going into this game.” Defensive tackle Kenny Clark said the time is now: “We haven’t did too well with the mobile quarterbacks. We’ve got to get better. We’ve got to get better there. And excited for the challenge, for sure.”