Georgia Football: Dawgs who showed out in the NFL week 1.

Justin Houston, OLB Kansas City Chiefs.

Justin Houston has the potential to be a top 3 pass rusher in the NFL. He’s done it before when he is healthy and he looked back to his best in week 1. There is a reason the guy had 22 sacks in just one season, he’s a beast. Injuries have been his biggest issue since that magical 2014 season, but he seems to be fit again.

He had 2 sacks of Tom Brady in the 4th quarter as the Chiefs stepped up and took the game away from the defending champions. Those sacks were key moments as the Chiefs defense smothered the Patriots.

One thing the Chiefs did is save his pass rushing until later in the game. Houston dropped into coverage more than he had previously which confused Brady a bit. It also kept Houston fresh for the 4th quarter when he really went after Brady. It was a different tactic from head coach Andy Ried and it seemed to work. If Houston stays fresh and healthy all season, look for his name to be mentioned a lot in these reports.