Denver Broncos: Revisiting Draft Choice Bradley Chubb
As the regular season approaches, we wanted to take an individual look at each of the Denver Broncos 2017 Draft Choices and how they’ve performed in camp.
With the fifth pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Denver Broncos selected NC State linebacker Bradley Chubb. How has Chubb performed in preseason and camp?
Well, it would seem. Chubb is the most important Broncos defensive pickup since Von Miller. Under the direction of Miller and part-time coach DeMarcus Ware, The Astronaut has not disappointed.
Sold as a pass-rush demon out of North Carolina State, Chubb has shown excellent versatility, both in run support and coverage. His game is technically sound but he’s also a powerful bull-rusher at 6-4 and 270 pounds.
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Chubb is the rare combination of strength, speed, athleticism, awareness and drive. A true five-tool guy, it’s almost hard to believe he lasted until the 5th pick for Denver.
As important as any aspect of his game is that drive. As evidenced in his safety against the Bears, he can and will be a disruptive force in the mold of Miller from the right side. On that play, Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky muffed a snap in the end-zone and as he scrambled to recover the ball, Chubb covered him for the two-point play. What’s missed is that even if Trubisky had fielded the snap cleanly, Chubb was so fast to the backfield that the play would likely have resulted the same.
As we’ve mentioned often, that pass-rush, with Miller and Chubb from the ends is going to propel last year’s third-ranked defense back to the top of the pack. Everything is made better when the opponent is afraid of a monster rush. Adam Gotsis, Derek Wolfe and Domata Peko, Sr. will benefit from the play at the outside LB spots but the biggest beneficiaries are going to be the Denver cornerbacks.
As Denver gets ready for the preseason finale, they can be confident that their first-round pick is going to be a significant impact player.