The Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens will be kicking off in Brazil at 4:25 p.m. E.T. on Sunday.
That’s assuming that the Cowboys and Ravens players opt to proceed with the game as scheduled, of course. There’s a growing push for the Cowboys and Ravens players to “boycott” Sunday’s game, due to field conditions. At this time, no boycott is planned, and the NFL maintains that the field is up to standards.
Dallas and Baltimore have taken different approaches to the game.
While Ravens players have been out and about, enjoying the city, Cowboys players have reportedly been barred from leaving the team hotel.
“Ravens have been out in Rio, enjoying the city The Cowboys have not been allowed to even leave the hotel, not to even venture to the beach. We will see who handled the business trip best. Choose your fighter,” Clarence Hill Jr. shared on X, formerly known as Twitter.
NFL field director Nick Pappas told reporters in Brazil that the league is confident in the field conditions.
“We have an independent inspector that comes in, walks with myself, walks with a member of the NFLPA,” Pappas said, via Pro Football Talk. “They were here yesterday. Performed that test. Things check out. We’ve made additional improvements to the field that we think were helpful.”
The field at Maracana Stadium is considered to be in poor shape by many. However, some have said that it’ll look worse on TV and in photos than it is in reality.
NFLPA executive director JC Tretter voiced his concerns on Friday.
“We’ve been in regular communication with the league about the field,” Tretter wrote on X. “Both the NFLPA’s and the league’s field experts have been on the ground in Brazil for days, monitoring conditions and working to make the surface as safe and playable as possible for Sunday.
“Based on our experts’ assessment, the field needed better traction and stability. They recommended reinforced stitching to help the surface hold together and brought in equipment to reinforce as much of the field as possible before the game. Our experts will remain engaged and continue evaluating conditions through kickoff.”
Kickoff remains scheduled for 4:25 p.m. E.T. on CBS.
