NFLPA president J.C. Tretter details concerns about Brazil field ahead of Cowboys-Ravens at Maracanã

NFLPA president J.C. Tretter laid out the union's concerns about the playing surface in Brazil ahead of Sunday's Cowboys-Ravens game at Maracanã Stadium, detailing both the specific field issues and a broader warning about the league's international expansion.

Tretter said the concern heading into the week was that the field would be "loose, patchy, and lead to excessive slipping" — conditions he described as more of a playability and performance issue than a significant injury risk, but one that still affects the quality of the game. "Players should be able to perform at the level they expect of themselves and that fans expect from them," he wrote.

The union and the league have had field experts on the ground in Brazil for days, and based on their assessment the surface needed better traction and stability. Tretter said they recommended reinforced stitching to help the field hold together and brought in equipment to reinforce as much of the surface as possible before kickoff, with experts remaining engaged through game time.

Tretter used the situation to press two larger points. First, he argued the NFL needs field standards that account for both safety and performance, citing the cleats-melting surface in Nashville last week and frozen fields as examples of the inconsistency players face. Second, he flagged the international expansion itself: two of the three games played in Brazil have had field-related issues, which he called "not a coincidence" given how hard this time of year makes it to maintain an NFL-grade grass surface.

"The NFL has been clear they want to continue to grow the game internationally," Tretter wrote. "However, growth alone cannot be the goal. The goal has to be growing the game while maintaining the standards our players deserve. If we can't do both, then we need to make different decisions."