FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday at The Star that he has no concerns about the grass at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, where Dallas plays the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. The NFL has people at the stadium, Schottenheimer said.
Sunday’s game will be the first NFL game played in Rio de Janeiro. Dallas is the designated home team, kickoff is 3:25 p.m. CT, and the Cowboys fly out Thursday night.
Flamengo, the Brazilian club that plays its home matches at Maracanã, has complained about the field. Goalkeeper Agustín Rossi told Brazilian outlet ge that both penalty areas were in bad shape and that there were bumps everywhere, The Dallas Morning News reported. An NFL spokesperson told Front Office Sports that the league has a plan in place for a high-quality playing surface, as it does for every international game.
Schottenheimer has not seen the surface in person yet. He is withholding judgment on how it might affect a player returning from a soft-tissue injury until he does, but everything the Cowboys have heard from the league about the field has been good, Schottenheimer said.
“No concerns. Literally just walking down here, Todd Williams came and saw me and said the NFL has people down there. They said we’re going to be fine,” Schottenheimer said. “So I have zero concerns about it. They’ve got people down there, eyes on it. So we look forward to the trip.”
Any player Dallas signs this week would need a passport and a visa to make the trip to Rio. The Cowboys can handle that paperwork on a short timeline, Schottenheimer said.
“We can do it. We know people,” Schottenheimer explained. “I mean, we can do whatever we got to do. I mean, might be a Brazilian citizen. I mean, who knows?”
Dallas Cowboys Will Walk Maracanã Stadium Saturday Before Ravens Game
Dallas has a walkthrough scheduled at the stadium Saturday. Players will see where their lockers are and get on the field to check the grass, Schottenheimer said.
“The reason we do that is we want them to, number one, see the environment. It’s supposed to be a really cool historic stadium,” Schottenheimer said. “But I want them to see where their lockers are and things like that. Then get out on the field. They’ll check out the grass and certain areas and things like that. And just give them a chance to look around and relax. And I think that’s important.”
“I kind of learned that from Pete Carroll, that we always did that whenever we would go east of the Mississippi from Seattle,” Schottenheimer continued. “We would always go on game day Saturday and just kind of walk around, see the locker room. It helps you kind of picture it as you’re driving to the stadium on the bus, so you kind of know what to expect.”
Schottenheimer was the Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator under Pete Carroll from 2018 to 2020. The week breaks the usual routine, with a long flight and a Thursday departure. Baltimore plays a physical style on offense and defense and has been good historically and this season, Schottenheimer said.
“Oh, I think they’re looking forward to playing the game,” Schottenheimer said. “I think we’re of the opinion that we love stepping into that locker room on game day together and putting on our uniforms and going out there and competing together and playing a historically and currently really good football team that plays a very physical style offense and defense. Our guys are excited. It’s early in the season of a long journey. This is just the next step.”
Brian Schottenheimer Says Cowboys Will Have Extra Cleats In Rio
The NFL’s first game in Brazil, a 34-29 Philadelphia Eagles win over the Green Bay Packers at Arena Corinthians in São Paulo on Sept. 6, 2024, drew complaints about footing. Dallas will not force any player into a particular cleat, Schottenheimer said. The team will carry options, including molded cleats and studs of different lengths.
“We talk to our guys about it. There’s a lot of different things. You can wear molded cleats. They’ve got seven studs, different things with different lengths,” Schottenheimer said. “I mean, I could bore you guys with all the specifics. So our guys will have those on them. They can try them this week if they want. But some of these guys are funny about the way their cleats feel and the way they want them to feel. And so personal preference, we’re not forcing anybody to wear anything, but we’ll have plenty of shoes down there in case we need to adjust.”
Weather can change a game plan, and so can a surface, Schottenheimer said. Most of the adjusting happens on game day.
“Without seeing the surface, I’d say the answer is yes. I mean, it does. You’re aware of different fields. You’re aware when you go to Lambeau in December what it looks like or if you’re going to certain places,” Schottenheimer said. “But it’s more of a game day thing. I’ve gone to Buffalo and not been able to see from me to you because of snow. I mean, that changes some things. You really couldn’t throw the ball because you couldn’t see that far down the field. But it’s more of a you have a plan, and then you can adjust a little bit on game day. And more of it’s based on how much rain and wind and snow and things like that.”
Dallas is 1-1 after beating the Washington Commanders 37-20 on Sunday. Schottenheimer does not look at the record in terms of what an 0-2 start would have meant. He knew Dallas probably would not win if it did not play better.
“I don’t really look at it that way. I mean, I wanted to play better. I knew if we didn’t play better, we probably wouldn’t win. We did play better in a lot of areas and talked about special teams and things like that,” Schottenheimer said. “But I never get too caught up in those things. I just take it one game at a time. Play a really good team this week in Baltimore in a foreign country. And then we come back and play a really good team in Houston and then Tampa Bay on a short week and Green Bay. And just take it one game at a time.”
After Rio, Dallas plays at the Houston Texans on Oct. 4 and faces the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday, Oct. 8. The Ravens are 1-1.
