The Baltimore Ravens snatched a dramatic victory from the Dallas Cowboys in Rio de Janeiro, with Tyler Loop drilling a 56-yard field goal as time expired.
The NFL’s first game in the Brazilian city delivered a thrilling finish. Dallas appeared poised to win, but the Ravens produced a stunning late turnaround in the closing seconds.
With the score level at 31-31, Baltimore regained possession with only seven seconds remaining, making overtime seem almost inevitable.
Lamar Jackson had different plans. He connected with Zay Flowers for a crucial 27-yard completion to move the chains, then called timeout with one second left, setting up Loop’s long-range attempt.
Loop sent the 56-yard kick through the uprights to spark wild celebrations, sealing a 34-31 win and moving Baltimore to 2-1 on the season.
Dallas drops to 1-2 and now faces a 10-hour flight back to the United States while reflecting on a devastating ending to a game it came so close to winning.
Tyler Loop celebrates with his teammates after sealing a wild walkoff win for the Ravens
Loop pulled out the Cristiano Ronaldo ‘siuu’ celebration, much to the delight of the fans
A crowd of 72,792 packed the Maracana for the NFL’s third game in Brazil and its first in Rio de Janeiro, witnessing a back-and-forth contest filled with major plays.
Derrick Henry led the way for Baltimore through much of the game, rushing for 89 yards and two touchdowns.
The Ravens held a 24-13 advantage in the third quarter, but the Cowboys quickly responded. Jake Ferguson made up for an earlier turnover when Dak Prescott found him for a 19-yard touchdown, before Dallas cut the deficit to 24-21 on a two-point conversion featuring a fine catch by CeeDee Lamb.
Baltimore then appeared set to extend its lead to 10 points, but Henry was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-inches at the goal line. Rookie linebacker Jaishawn Barham burst through the offensive line to make the decisive tackle.
It was the NFL’s first ever game in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro and fans flocked south
Dallas carried that momentum into a 96-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by a 49-yard pass to Lamb. KaVontae Turpin finished the possession with a 9-yard touchdown run, putting the Cowboys ahead 28-24 with just under 10 minutes remaining.
The Ravens had made a major defensive impact earlier in the third quarter by forcing a Dallas turnover when Ferguson fumbled a shovel pass from Prescott. Later, the Cowboys attempted a 59-yard field goal, but Keondre Jackson blocked Brandon Aubrey’s kick, preserving Baltimore’s 17-13 lead and giving the Ravens possession near midfield.
Four plays later, Jackson found Chris Moore for a 4-yard touchdown, extending Baltimore’s advantage to 24-13.
The Ravens overcame a difficult opening stretch by scoring 17 unanswered points to take a 17-13 lead into halftime.
Henry’s 5-yard run early in the second quarter also moved him into ninth place on the NFL’s all-time rushing list, taking him past Pro Football Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson’s 13,259 yards.
Dallas Cowboys mascot ‘Rowdy’ poses with fans at the Maracana, most famous for soccer
If the five-time Pro Bowl selection maintains his current pace, Henry could also pass Jerome Bettis (13,662), LaDainian Tomlinson (13,684) and even Curtis Martin (14,101) this season.
After concerns about the playing surface this week, the grass field at the Maracana appeared to hold up pretty well.
The NFL has been playing in Brazil since 2024, but the two previous games were at the 48,000-seat NeoQuimica Arena in Sao Paulo.
In the first year of the Brazil game, its turf was also criticized and forced players of the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers to change their cleats to stop slipping.