J.J. Watt has raised further concerns over the state of the turf ahead of the heavyweight clash between the Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Taking place at the iconic Maracaña Stadium for the first time in NFL history, the natural grass surface has been the subject of huge controversy in the weeks leading up to Sunday’s game. The playing surface of the Maracaña Stadium has been criticizedGettyBrazilian soccer teams Flamengo and Fluminense, who each play their home games at the 73,000-plus capacity stadium, have each made complaints about the ‘unbelievable’ grass throughout the 2026/27 season. At one point, there were even rumours circulating, suggesting that the NFL was holding discussions about moving the game 5,000-plus miles away to AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas.Although NFL field director Nick Pappas assuaged any fears over the state of the playing surface, amid heightened injury concerns, former NFL defender-turned-analyst Watt isn’t so sure.Watt posted two images of the surface on X.View Tweet: https://t.co/PDOg3uTTFx“I’m giving the field the benefit of the doubt until we see reason not to, once the players are on it,” he wrote. “But I will present real photos I just took. “1st Photo: The 10 yard line, between the hashes. 2nd Photo: A sample of the artificial turf plugs threaded into the field.”This has led to a huge outpouring of criticism from fans aimed toward the NFL about prioritizing player safety. “There is no benefit of the doubt here. This is disgraceful, especially when they’ve had months to plan for this,” one fan posted to X. “This is the highest level of football. The NFL is a multi billion dollar entity. There’s no reason these guys should be playing on a dog s*** field like this. It needs to be pristine. It’s the NFL,” a second user commented. “At what point do the players just refuse to play? This is absurd,” a third added. The playing surface looks a bit worse for wearGettyJackson and the Ravens will be hoping to avoid any injuryGetty“As someone who works in turf, I hope they topdress the c*** out of that with sand and water it in because if a player plants into those holes, the chances of injury is gunna skyrocket,” a fourth wrote. NFL’s desperate efforts to make field up to standardThe NFL had sent a GrassMaster Stitch Machine to Brazil which applies patches of artificial turf to reinforce the structure of the current pitch, and is designed to increase the field’s resistance and safety. Despite this, when Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers – who has been nursing a hamstring injury – was warming up on the field, there was a plethora of blades of grass being ripped up out of the ground by his cleats.But CBS Sports sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson doubled-down on the state of the field. “The conversation all week has been about the field. Now, I spoke with the NFL yesterday and they told me that with the excessive wet weather and the number of soccer games, the conditions here on the field have been less ideal,” Wolfson said. “The NFL went out and shipped in equipment to stitch synthetic fibre on this field in the grass and in-between the numbers to add stability and traction. The NFL shipped out specialist equipment in a bid to make the grass saferGetty“The NFL and NFLPA say that the field does meet safety standards. In terms of performance, we don’t know. They don’t know, and we won’t know until kick off.“But we did get a chance to speak with the Cowboys and Ravens and I can tell you, they’re not worried about the field. They’re worried about coming here and playing a good game, and leaving with a victory.”It remains to be seen how well the field will hold up during the game, but both Ravens and Cowboys players and staff will likely be hoping to just get through the game unscathed. Join talkSPORT’s dedicated US Sports YouTube channel The S* Word every Tuesday and Thursday for our brand new NFL shows.On Tuesdays, Will Gavin and US senior reporter Brian T. Smith will debate the biggest talking points from the NFL weekend, while on Thursdays Efe Obada joins the crew to talk to players past and present and break down what to look for across the league.