The Cowboys Just BLEW The Ravens Game... And Here's Why

The Dallas Cowboys just suffered one of the most frustrating losses of their 2026 season, falling to the Baltimore Ravens 34-31 in Brazil. And according to Mauricio Rodriguez, the Cowboys didn't simply lose because Lamar Jackson made a great play. Dallas made critical mistakes on both sides of the football in the biggest moments of the game. The first came on offense. With the Cowboys driving for a potential game-winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter, Dallas reached first-and-goal from the 2-yard line. A false start pushed the Cowboys back, Dak Prescott scrambled for two yards and Dallas eventually faced third-and-goal from the 5. That's when Prescott threw the football away. George Pickens appeared to have an opportunity near the pylon, but Dak did not give himself enough time to see the play develop. Brian Schottenheimer said after the game that he had "over coached" Dak in that situation and that Prescott had been taught to throw the ball away on third-and-goal. Mauricio strongly disagrees with that approach. With Dak Prescott at quarterback and weapons like CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens available, Mauricio believes Dallas should trust its quarterback to make a play rather than coaching him into taking the safe option in a game-defining moment. But Mauricio also believes the play calling deserves criticism. The Cowboys had three opportunities inside the 5-yard line and did not have a better-designed concept ready for the most important down of the game. The second major issue came on defense. With only seven seconds remaining and Baltimore needing a huge play to set up a potential game-winning field goal, Dallas played an aggressive man-coverage look. The Ravens completed a 27-yard pass, setting up the winning kick. Mauricio questions why Dallas chose to play such an aggressive coverage structure in that situation instead of forcing Baltimore to spend more time moving the football downfield. The problems go beyond those two plays. Dallas is dealing with significant roster issues, including problems at right tackle, linebacker and throughout the secondary. Injuries have made those weaknesses even more difficult to overcome. Ryan Flournoy also received eight targets and finished with two catches, highlighting another area where Dallas' depth was tested. The Cowboys are now 1-2 and head into a difficult matchup with the Houston Texans. The record alone shouldn't determine whether Cowboys fans panic. Mauricio explains why the loss to Baltimore exposed both coaching and personnel problems that Dallas needs to address quickly. Was this simply a heartbreaking loss? Or did the Cowboys reveal deeper problems that could follow them throughout the season? Watch Mauricio Rodriguez's full breakdown of the Cowboys' 34-31 loss to the Ravens. Subscribe to A to Z Sports Dallas for daily Dallas Cowboys news, analysis, postgame reaction and coverage throughout the 2026 NFL season. 0:00 The Cowboys BLEW the Ravens game 0:32 The third-and-goal decision 1:10 Was George Pickens open? 1:33 Schottenheimer admits he over-coached Dak 2:08 Dak needed to make the throw 2:29 Cowboys need better play calling 3:17 The third-down problem 4:27 Who is responsible? 5:06 The defensive call with 7 seconds left 6:08 Why the coverage was a problem 6:28 The Cowboys' bigger roster problems 6:52 Ryan Flournoy's eight targets 7:17 Coaching cost Dallas 7:38 Should Cowboys fans panic? #DallasCowboys #Cowboys #Ravens #NFL #DakPrescott #CowboysNation Make A to Z Sports your preferred source on Google: https://google.com/preferences/source?q=atozsports.com Play A to Z Sports Daily Games: https://atozsports.com/games ✭ For more Cowboys coverage be sure to follow here: https://atozsports.com/nfl/dallas-cowboys-news/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AtoZDallas Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atozsportsdallas/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AtoZSportsDallas TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@atozsportsdallas