Three Things To Watch: Vikings vs. Chiefs

Aug 17, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) is sacked by Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Joe Mays (53) during the first half of the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports

ATTACKING DEFENSE?

Bob Sutton called off the dogs in Carolina in favor of playing a more vanilla defense, leading to a lot of struggles for the Chiefs secondary. On one end it is concerning the Chiefs front three couldn’t create pressure and the secondary couldn’t cover anyone. But it is also true that the amount of times the Chiefs are not sending one or both of Justin Houston and Tamba Hali on a pass rush are going to be few and far between.

When the Chiefs did get creative with their pass rush against the Panthers they were successful. Chris Owens had a particularly strong game rushing the passer and causing problems for Cam Newton. Carolina only had one total yard of offense in the first quarter before the Chiefs backed off in the second quarter.

Tonight is supposed to be something of a dress rehearsal for the regular season so does that mean Sutton will be more aggressive with his play calling throughout the game? We really haven’t seen a lot of the different packages involving Dee Ford, Hali, and Houston being on the field at the same time, and we also haven’t seen guys like Ron Parker and Phillip Gaines benefit from the Chiefs pressure system. It would be nice to see a glimpse of both of those things.