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The Broncos are going with Kyle Orton as their starting quarterback. When they were giving him the first-team reps last week it seemed like an effort to inflate his trade value, but now the impression is that he's starting because he's simply much better than Tim Tebow.
As columnist Dave Krieger puts it in the Denver Post, Orton is "outplaying Tebow by a wide margin through the early days of training camp." Considering Denver was ready to trade Orton a week ago, that's quite a statement.
Krieger's column also references quotes from Brandon Lloyd in the new Sports Illustrated, saying how as a player he wants to win now, and that it would "tick him off" if the Broncos weren't going with the better quarterback. In Lloyd's analogy, where he references his experiences in San Francisco, Tebow is Alex Smith, the player the team wanted to start because he was a first-rounder.
Reading the column, you get the sense that Tebow doesn't have much support in his own locker room. Suddenly the idea of Orton starting this year doesn't look anything like the team trying to grease the skids for an Orton trade. It looks like an acknowledgment on the team's part that they'd have a mutiny on their hands otherwise.
It's worth mentioning at this point that Denver's head coach, John Fox, isn't exactly known for favoring youngsters over veterans. He started Jake Delhomme well past his pull-date, kept DeShaun Foster ahead of DeAngelo Williams, and blocked the development of Dwayne Jarrett with Steve Smith. OK, just kidding about that last one.
Anyway, it appears Orton is going to start, and Tebow will need an Orton injury to be any more than a late-round flier in drafts this year. His running ability makes him an intriguing fantasy option, but it looks like his passing ability isn't going to get him into Denver's lineup anytime soon.
--Andy Richardson
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Posted by DANIEL STAMP | Aug. 04 at 01:43 AM
Kyle Orton is just one of those QBs that seems to perform, but not get recognized for his abiility. Dave Kreig, a decent QB with few weapons, was an example. Trent Dilfer was also, and won a super bowl. So was Bernie Kosar. It's not a new phenomenon ...
Posted by Brian Grzybowski | Aug. 04 at 03:15 AM
I think the Broncos will be fine if they start Orton. He's not the main reason that they stunk it up last season. I was looking over some of the Broncos game capsules and noticed that they were getting scored on from long range by everyone. They must have lead the league in allowing TDs of 20+ yards. There were a slew of scores put up by RBs and WRs as you would suspect...but then there were scrambling QBs and TEs getting in on the act. The Raiders had a FULLBACK go for a 73 yard pass reception against them. And the Special Teams! Opposing teams were trotting out kickers to hit some real long range ones. I know it's Mile High so a kicker's range is extended, but c'mon! You'd think the special teams would be good enough that opposing coaches wouldn't say "57 yarder? Sure, send the kicker in" on that regular of a basis. I think John Fox can fix these things and the running game. I think the Broncos might put up a fight this year. And still finish 8-8.
Posted by CAL HOSKISON | Aug. 05 at 04:01 PM
Well it comes down to this, Money, this team cannot afford to pay Tebow the first round money he is getting to sit while Orton is making close to 10 mil this yr...At some point they will have to give Tebow his shot, so far Tebow is like T-Jack, a kid who draws all kinds of remarks about his ability, while never really getting a chance to show what he can do.