The Denver Broncos completed the 2017 season with a very talented group of individuals when it came to rushing the passer — and yet somehow got even better in the offseason.
“Browns gonna Brown,” many said when Cleveland passed on Bradley Chubb at No. 4 overall, allowing the Broncos to pair the best pass-rusher coming out of college with a former Super Bowl MVP in his prime in Von Miller. Just a few days into camp, Chubb’s teammates are already taking notice of his size, speed, skills and play-making ability.
“I feel like he’s going to be great. Number-five pick. I’ve already talked about how I feel about Chubb,” Miller stated about his new teammate. “I feel like the sky is the limit for him. He’s going to be a great player. Every single day, he gets better and better. That’s all you can really ask of young guys, and that’s exactly what he’s out here doing.”
It’s incredible what kind of ceiling the Broncos’ pass rush may have. Ranked seventh going into 2018 by Pro Football Focus, the Broncos ranked fourth in the league against the pass in 2017 and only got better in the front-seven that sat No. 3 when it comes to sacking the quarterback last year.
“If you have a lot of rushers and a lot of good players that can get to the quarterback on the same field at the same time, I feel like it’s going to be chaos,” Chubb told the media at training camp. “I feel like that’s what they try and do, just cause chaos for the offenses and try to find a way to block different things.”
“We’re all good rush-stoppers and pass-defenders. Being able to have all of that in our arsenal is very helpful,” Chubb said.
Chubb is spot-on when it comes to the defending the run, as Denver came in at 92.4 as a team. That ranked No. 1 last year in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus’s metric.
The pass rush will come at opponents in multiple ways in 2018, and head coach Vance Joseph what challenges Denver will pose to opponents.
“Obviously on sub downs in our NASCAR package, to get a speed rusher on the inside guard or center, that’s impossible for those guys to block,” Joseph told the media Wednesday.
“We do have those body types who can rush on guards. In our base package, we have some things we can do to add rushers to the package and to have some coverage ideas behind it. It’s a good thing when you have rushers and you have three or four guys that you can rotate also. It’s a good thing; it makes it hard on the offense.”
Chubb’s play in training camp is also turning the heads of his teammates behind him in the secondary. “He’s a smart football player,” Darian Stewart said Wednesday. “He knows the game well and he’s going to make some plays this year.”
Chubb added to a front seven that may include a healthy Shane Ray in Week One. Paired with a strong defensive line, Denver has a luxury in pass-rush depth that’ll be tough for opponents to overcome for four quarters as the Broncos pound down the door.
“Our D-Line group is stacked,” starting defensive tackle Domata Peko said. “It really brings out the competition in our group. Our group is real tight-knit group; we’re a family in there.”
With talent comes competition. With competition, comes improvement. That’s exactly what Peko sees happening in 2018 for Denver.
“We love to compete, we love to get each other better. I love the additions of Clint [McDonald], DeShawn [Walker], and then also our guys like [Adam] Gotsis, Shelby [Harris], big [Derek] Wolfe. We have a really solid defensive line, and I think that’s one of the strengths of our team — and we’re ready to carry our team.”