Bradley Chubb is a Denver Bronco.
Chubb did not have to wait long to hear his name called. The Broncos chose Chubb with the fifth overall pick of the NFL Draft Thursday night in Dallas.
The 6-foot-4, 270-pounder set NC State’s career record for sacks (25.0) and tackles for loss (54.5) and won the Bronko Nagurski Award in 2017 for the nation’s top defensive player. Chubb was also a consensus All-American and was the 2017 ACC Defensive Player of the Year.
“What I love about Bradley Chubb is his passion for the game,” ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said. “He may be the most complete defensive end to come out in recent memory.”
"He sets a physical edge in the run game, violent hands, impacts the quarterback in the pass game," NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock noted. "I think he’s going to have a similar impact as Joey Bosa [10.5 sacks in 12 games] did as a rookie."
The Broncos had been prepared to trade the pick to the Buffalo Bills, who were eager to draft a quarterback, but when Chubb fell to Denver at five after the Cleveland Browns surprisingly took Ohio State corner Denzel Ward with pick No. 4, the Broncos declined to make the trade, according to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter.
Chubb is NC State’s first first-round draft choice since John McCargo was picked 26th overall in 2006 by the Buffalo Bills. He is the first of what promises to be a good weekend for former NC State football players. As many as eight could hear their names called by the end of the draft on Saturday.
Chubb is the third NC State player to be picked in the top five of the NFL Draft, joining Mario Williams (first in 2006), Roman Gabriel (second in 1962) and Philip Rivers (fourth in 2004).
Denver is a good landing spot for Chubb. The Broncos still have one of the best defenses in the NFL despite a 5-11 overall record last year. Denver was third in the NFL in total yards allowed, but its 33 overall teams sacks ranked just 22nd in the league.
Chubb will be paired up with Von Miller, arguably the NFL’s premier pass rusher who has at least 10.0 sacks in six of his seven seasons, and the lone exception being when Miller only played nine games in 2013 and had 5.0 sacks.
Miller famously noted last week about Chubb: "He's [Raiders star] Khalil Mack and Von Miller put together … if we could steal a player like that, I'm all for it," and had a great reaction when he heard about the former NCSU becoming a teammate.
Stanford head coach David Shaw, working as a commentator for NFL Network, labeled the choice "a phenomenal pick."
"Think about their edge rush ability with Chubb, Von Miller, former first-round pick Shane Ray … the three of them getting after quarterbacks in the sub package, Wow!" Mayock said.
"I think Denver had to be shocked that the second best player on the board, in my opinion, Bradley Chubb was still there at No. 5," Kiper concluded.
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