When Jim Nantz blurted out the words “trio in Rio” as Tyler Loop’s walk-off field goal sailed through the uprights to lift the Ravens past the Cowboys in Brazil, the veteran CBS voice was convinced nobody watching would understand what he meant.

Nantz revealed as much during a recent appearance on Underscore Media’s Traina Thoughts, where he and host Jimmy Traina revisited the final seconds of the Ravens’ 34-31 win on Sept. 27, which had Nantz and J.J. Watt practically out of their seats in the booth.

After the Cowboys were stuffed at the goal line and settled for a game-tying field goal with seven seconds left, Lamar Jackson hit Zay Flowers over the middle to move Baltimore to the Dallas 38-yard line, and officials ruled that Jackson had called a timeout with one second still on the clock. Nantz set the scene for Loop’s attempt with plenty of context, noting that the kicker grew up in the Dallas area and that his miss in last season’s finale kept the Ravens out of the playoffs, before the 25-year-old split the uprights from 56 yards to deliver Baltimore one of the most dramatic wins of the young season.

“Loop’s kick! Oh my goodness!” Nantz said. “A trio in Rio! And the Ravens with a walk-off winner!”

“A TRIO IN RIO!”

Jim Nantz and J.J. Watt went crazy on the CBS broadcast during the incredible Ravens-Cowboys finish in Brazil. 🏈🎙 https://t.co/giNj9yjfcW

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 28, 2026

Nantz said the line, an off-the-cuff nod to the three points that won the game, surprised even him, and he immediately wondered whether viewers would follow what he meant.

“When I said it, I thought, ‘I’m not sure anybody is going to understand what I just said. Who’s ever called a field goal a trio?’”

But despite the acclaim the call received from fans and media alike, including Traina, who heaped praise on it during Nantz’s appearance, the longtime CBS voice confessed his initial instinct was to wince at what he had just said.

He also told Traina he was largely oblivious to the groundswell of support for the call until the CBS crew was somewhere over the Atlantic on its way home from Brazil, when a few colleagues approached him with news of the reaction.

“I got a tremendous outpouring. I had no clue, and I thought, you know, I don’t say it and then think, ‘Oh, is that gonna be well received, or is that gonna get ripped?’” Nantz said. “When I said it, I thought it probably didn’t make sense. And that night, we were all flying back, and a couple of them came over and said, ‘Man, there’s like a huge reaction to ‘Trio in Rio.” And I said, ‘Is it good? Is it bad?’ because I had some texts that were positive. They go, ‘No, it is like universally well received.’ So, got lucky with that one.”

The same appearance featured Nantz’s first public comments on Romo’s departure from CBS, which formally cut ties with his partner of nine seasons on Oct. 2, ending a suspension that had kept Romo off the air since his arrest. Jim Nantz insisted he had “no role” in the network’s decision, which he said rested entirely with CBS Sports president David Berson, and predicted that Romo would “unquestionably” work in the industry again.

Nantz and Watt will continue their budding partnership on Sunday when they call Bills-Raiders at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, the same building where Nantz capped Super Bowl LVIII with “Jackpot, Kansas City!” as Patrick Mahomes found Mecole Hardman for the overtime winner.

The 67-year-old said at the time that he hoped that line made sense to people, too.