3 Things We Learned from Cowboys vs. Ravens: Dallas Finds a Way to Lose Another Heartbreaker in Rio
By Staff Writer | September 28, 2026 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
RIO DE JANEIRO — The Dallas Cowboys flew nearly 5,000 miles to Brazil hoping to make a statement. Instead, they authored another chapter in a familiar and painful book.
Tyler Loop’s 56-yard field goal as time expired lifted the Baltimore Ravens to a 34-31 victory over the Cowboys on Sunday at Maracanã Stadium, capping a stunning seven-second drive that left Dallas players and coaches searching for answers on the long flight home .
The Cowboys (1-2) had just tied the game on Brandon Aubrey’s 23-yard field goal with seven seconds remaining. Overtime seemed inevitable. Lamar Jackson had other ideas, completing a 27-yard pass to Zay Flowers before alertly calling timeout with one second left to set up Loop’s game-winner .
Here are three things we learned from a game that will haunt Dallas for weeks.
1. The Cowboys’ Run Defense Showed Up — Until It Didn’t
Entering Sunday, the Cowboys ranked near the bottom of the NFL in run defense. Stopping Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson seemed like a mathematical impossibility .
For much of the afternoon, Dallas proved the numbers wrong.
The Cowboys stuffed Henry twice on fourth down, including a critical fourth-and-goal from inside the 1-yard line in the third quarter. Donovan Ezeiruaku and Jaishawn Barham combined for the stop that kept Dallas within striking distance .
Henry still finished with 89 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries, but he averaged just 3.4 yards per attempt — his lowest mark of the season . Jackson added 50 rushing yards on six carries, most of which came late as the Ravens’ offensive line struggled to protect him .
The problem: When it mattered most, Dallas couldn’t get off the field. Baltimore converted critical third downs in the fourth quarter, and Jackson’s legs bought him enough time to find rookie tight end Matt Hibner for the go-ahead touchdown with 1:30 remaining .
The run defense was better. It still wasn’t good enough when the game was on the line.
2. Javonte Williams and the Run Game Finally Found Their Footing
Through two weeks, the Cowboys’ rushing attack was essentially nonexistent. Javonte Williams had managed just 71 total yards, and the offensive line was struggling without Pro Bowl guard Tyler Smith .
That changed in Rio.
Williams rushed 19 times for 98 yards and a touchdown, averaging 5.8 yards per carry. He eclipsed his entire season total from the first two weeks by the third quarter .
Dallas opened the game with a clear commitment to the run, feeding Williams seven times for 45 yards on the first two possessions. The strategy paid off with a 2-yard touchdown run that gave the Cowboys an early 10-0 lead .
“It was below their standard through two weeks,” Dallas News noted in its takeaways. “The Cowboys proved for the first time that they could run the ball” .
With Tyler Smith expected to return soon, the running game’s emergence is the most encouraging development from an otherwise disappointing afternoon.
3. Dak Prescott and the Offense Did Enough — Until the Final Seven Seconds
Dak Prescott finished 25-of-40 for 276 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. CeeDee Lamb topped 100 yards for the second straight game (7 catches, 112 yards), and George Pickens added 82 yards on seven receptions .
The Cowboys scored 31 points on the road against a Ravens defense that had been stout through two weeks. They converted a 96-yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter, capped by KaVontae Turpin’s 9-yard run, to take a 28-24 lead with under 10 minutes remaining .
But the final offensive possession will be remembered for what Dallas didn’t do.
After a controversial pass interference call on Nate Wiggins gave the Cowboys first-and-goal at the 2-yard line with under 30 seconds left, Dallas had four plays to win the game. Instead, they managed just two yards on a Prescott scramble and settled for Aubrey’s chip-shot field goal to tie .
“OK, so the Cowboys had an unserious offensive possession with a real opportunity to win,” USA Today’s For The Win wrote. “That’s fine. It happens” .
What happened next was anything but fine. With seven seconds left and the ball at Baltimore’s 35, the Cowboys’ defense allowed Flowers to get open over the middle for 27 yards. Jackson called timeout. Loop drilled the kick.
Game over. Season-defining loss.
The Bottom Line
The Cowboys are 1-2 for the fourth time in six years. In the previous three instances, they missed the playoffs .
There were positives in Rio. The run game showed life. The defense made plays in critical moments. Prescott protected the football.
But moral victories don’t count in the standings. And in a game that was there for the taking, Dallas found a way to let it slip away — just as it has so many times before.
Next up: a road trip to Houston to face the Texans on Sunday. The Cowboys have a chance to turn things around. The question is whether they will.
