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View Full Version : The Thrill of Competing - Simms and Orton



ChairmanBron
04-06-2009, 07:33 PM
http://www.denverbroncos.com/page.php?id=334&storyID=8936


By Gray Caldwell
DenverBroncos.com
April 6, 2009





ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- When Chris Simms signed with the Broncos as a free agent on March 5, he had no intentions of being the starting quarterback in Denver.

He was behind an entrenched starter, and hasn't played in a regular season NFL game since rupturing his spleen in 2006.

"I understood what role was expected out of me," Simms said. "I knew it wasn't likely that a team was going to bring me in to being the starting quarterback of their team without me playing the last year and a half."

When Kyle Orton showed up for offseason conditioning in Chicago, a returning team captain for the Bears, he had no intentions of being the starting quarterback in Denver, either.

But how much as changed just one month later.

"It's been pretty crazy, but that's the NFL -- a lot of things can happen in a short period of time," Simms said.

Now both quarterbacks have a chance to be the starter for the Broncos, a team bursting with offensive talent and a new scheme prepared to take full advantage of it. And both couldn't be happier.

"Not taking anything away from my days in Chicago, but this is an offense that a quarterback can thrive in, and I really think this is hopefully where I can take the next step in my career and really become a top-level quarterback in this league," Orton said.

The offense Orton referred to is the highly-successful offensive scheme that Head Coach Josh McDaniels brings to Denver from New England. Last season, the Patriots had the No. 5 offense in the league even after losing perennial Pro Bowl quarterback Tom Brady. In 2007, New England led the league in passing offense and total offense, setting records along the way.

Simms had the opportunity to study McDaniels' offense when he played in Tennessee, and he said the success rate from play to play was so high that it shocked him.

"I would watch it on film and be like, 'I don't understand how this is getting open right here!' But now that I get to study a little you get to see the mystery behind it all," he said.

Orton said he's excited about learning the new terminology, because it gets him one step closer to putting points on the board on Sundays. In Chicago, sometimes the philosophy under defensive-minded Head Coach Lovie Smith was "let your special teams and defense win it," Orton said. "Not taking anything away from a defensive head coach, it's just that's what they know, that's their passion and that's what they're going to tend to coach towards."

He was still able to put up solid numbers in Chicago, but he felt like the Bears played it safe occasionally. Now he feels he can truly flourish with an offensive-minded coach like McDaniels.

"I think we're going to try to score as many points as possible, and that tends to suit my nature a little bit better," Orton said, a smile showing on his face.

But McDaniels' system doesn't put points on the board by itself -- it's all about the playmakers within that system. Luckily for both quarterbacks, the Broncos are chock full of them -- from an offensive line that allowed just 12 sacks in 2008 to a collection of talented running backs to a group of receivers that rivals any in the NFL.

"There's no doubt it's as good a group of receivers as I've ever been around," Simms said. "I'd never seen Brandon Marshall in person until I got here, and I didn't realize he's so big. I can see why he's been so good -- I've never seen any receiver that looks like that. Then of course between Brandon Stokley and Eddie Royal, those are guys who have explosive capabilities, and in Stokley's case, he's been doing it for a long time."

So while both players are excited about the prospect of improving and thriving under the tutelage of McDaniels, they have both already seen their fair share of success in the league.

Orton has earned a record of 21-12 over 33 career starts, including a 15-2 record in home games.

"That's my job description as a quarterback -- to win games -- and I've done a pretty good job of it early in my career," Orton said.

Simms took his team to the playoffs in 2005 after taking the reins for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the bye week and starting a career-high 11 games -- including the first round of the playoffs -- in the process. His injury in 2006 de-railed his rise in the ranks as an NFL starter, but a new beginning in Denver has Simms revitalized.

"I completely feel capable of going out there and being the person I was before I got hurt," he said.

Both members of the Denver duo have won a division title as a starting quarterback -- making the Broncos the only team in the NFL with multiple quarterbacks to have accomplished that feat since 2000. The Broncos join Dallas (Tony Romo, Jon Kitna) and New Orleans (Drew Brees, Mark Brunell) as one of three clubs in the league with multiple division-winning quarterbacks at any time in their careers.

For now, the two signal callers are learning a new system and all the difficult language that goes along with it. But with both players having shown success in the past, it only makes the competition for the starting spot even more interesting as the season draws closer.

McDaniels said he's been impressed with both players, and expects

"Kyle Orton has won in this league," McDaniels said. "He's tough, he's smart, he makes good decisions, he's accurate with the football and we're excited about having him on this team."

As for Simms?

"He's tough, he's smart, he's already knee-deep in the offense right now, learning more every day," the coach said. "Chris is bright. He can get the ball to the people we want him to get it to, and he'll have an opportunity to compete for that spot."

And competing couldn't suit Simms or Orton any better.

"That's the only thing I've ever asked for in my career," Orton said. "If you get that, that's all you can really hope for. I know Chris is a good quarterback, a smart player and he's won a lot of football games, as well.

"So we'll have a good quarterback on the field."

LoyalSoldier
04-06-2009, 08:33 PM
Some how thrill isn't the word I was looking for when I saw the title of this thread.

anton...
04-06-2009, 08:54 PM
Some how thrill isn't the word I was looking for when I saw the title of this thread.

:lol:

true that...

i watched both interviews and they both seemed very relaxed...

they know theres no real tension...

they both do the best they can, work hard and one will come out on top...

both men seem to love football but understand it all the same...

its not thrilling...

but i am intrigued...

Lonestar
04-06-2009, 11:56 PM
I liked what I saw from both of them.. seem to be team players and that IMHO is what we need..

Lots of team players on both sides of the LOS..

It was refreshing to be able to hear the questions being asked unlike in the past press conferences..