Making the case for the Broncos to take Bradley Chubb at No. 5

With the Denver Broncos offensive woes during the past four seasons, Sandy Clough said it’s justifiable that the team could go for the offensive side of the ball, specifically a quarterback, with the No. 5 pick.

Despite a victory in Super Bowl 50, the Broncos offense ranked 19th in the NFL in 2015, followed by 22nd and 27th in the following two seasons.

And with those woes going back as far as even midway through the 2014 season, Clough said, taking the best player available at No. 5 might mean taking the best offensive player available.

“You don’t necessarily have to take a quarterback at fifth-overall, but given the Broncos offensive woes over the last three, arguably even three-and-a-half years, don’t they have to take the best offensive player on the board?” Clough said Tuesday night. “If you talk about best player available, it just can’t be a defensive player.”

“The Broncos don’t have the luxury of doing that with an offense that has been so bad for at least three, possibly as long as three-and-a-half years, going back to mid-season 2014.”

However, one defensive player, in particular, the Broncos should consider taking with the fifth pick in April’s draft might just be pass rusher,Bradley Chubb, Clough said.

“If they have the chance to draft Chubb, I think you take him at No. 5 because it gives the defense a chance to set the tone again,” Clough said. “And you have a playmaker in Chubb, who isn’t just going to get sacks. He’s going to create havoc.”

Second, in importance, Clough said, to great quarterback play, in terms of team success, is being able to “put serious and relentless pressure on the opposing quarterback,” something Chubb combined with linebacker Von Miller would manufacture.

“You need a quarterback who can play well when it matters most, in the fourth quarter. You need a fourth-quarter pass rush,” Clough said. “Philadelphia won the Super Bowl on the basis of the fourth-quarter pass rush.”

And perhaps, more importantly, Miller could fill into that “mentor” role, the same in which future Hall of Famer DeMarcus Ware played for him during the Broncos Super Bowl run.

“I think it would inspire Miller, too. Where he was the pupil and Ware was the tutor, he’d be playing a different role this time. He’d be the tutor, and Chubb would be learning from him,” Clough said. “And I think that’s the kind of spark that Von Miller probably needs at this point in his career as well.”

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.