Orton lets his performance do his talking
Broncos' Orton lets his performance do his talking
By Mike Klis
The Denver Post
POSTED: 06/14/2010 01:00:00 AM MDT
Unflappable Kyle Orton, above, will have his hands full at training camp, where Brady Quinn and Tim Tebow figure to challenge him for the Broncos' starting QB position. (John Leyba, The Denver Post )
Unnoticed by the local latte sippers, not discussed from the area bar stools, is what Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton hasn't done.
Orton hasn't pulled a Jay Cutler.
Similar situation, only worse. Orton entered this offseason hoping to stuff a long-term contract into his back pocket. Instead, he got Brady Quinn and Tim Tebow rammed down his throat.
Cutler only got an after-the-fact threat of Matt Cassel last year and demanded out.
Orton received a far more apparent message of no confidence, yet didn't go public with his complaints. He didn't question whether coach Josh McDaniels had his back. He didn't demand a trade. He didn't even skip a voluntary offseason practice, as so many other restricted free agents did across the NFL.
Did Orton have to give himself a pep talk, remind himself to carry on despite all the offseason trans-actions that flowed away from his long-term future in Denver?
"Well, yeah, sure, every player wants security," Orton said. "But that's going to take care of itself. Through the play, I'll let that speak for itself."
Orton exudes confidence, but there is a quiet, low-key, even blase element to his personality that served him well during the Broncos' offseason workouts this spring. While Quinn and Tebow brought an All-America-type celebrity to team headquarters, Orton effectively went about his business without uttering a controversial word.
"He's the starter, no doubt," McDaniels said this past weekend in his final offseason statement about the Broncos' quarterback competition.
Orton is the starter in June and with practice adjourned until training camp, he'll be the starter in July and August too. Quinn and Tebow aren't going to stop trying to unseat Orton between now and the Sept. 12 regular-season opener at Jacksonville, but even they agree with McDaniels' assessment that the incumbent is ahead.
"Yeah, that's the way the reps have gone," Quinn said. "And Kyle has done a good job out here. He's been in the system a year. And you look back at last year, he had a good season. So I think it's fair to give him that."
Salary takes a big hit
Orton's performance in 2009 seemed to leave the Broncos both appreciative and wondering if they can do better. He threw for 3,802 yards and 21 touchdowns, but the team finished 8-8 and he wound up ranked 14th among NFL passers.
With his contract expired after his fifth NFL season, third as a starter, Orton expected to receive a new, multiyear deal through the leverage of un-restricted free agency. Instead, the NFL canceled out enough of its collective bargaining agreement so that Orton fell into restricted free agency.
The result was a one-year, $2.512 million deal that makes him one of the NFL's lowest-paid established starting quarterbacks.
That was the first blow. Then Orton watched the Broncos invest in others. Quinn had been a starter with the Cleveland Browns, if with limited success, and has a mere one degree of separation from McDaniels through Charlie Weis. McDaniels' offensive mentor in New England was Weis, who later became Quinn's coach at Notre Dame.
Next came the first-round selection of Tebow, the highly decorated quarterback from Florida and arguably the most popular player coming out of college since Alabama's Joe Namath signed with the AFL's New York Jets in 1965. (John Elway went through villainous circumstances in 1983 when he jilted the Baltimore Colts and forced a trade to the Broncos.)
As Orton is well aware, Tebow was drafted in the first round with the intent of becoming the Broncos' franchise quarterback. Orton also knows intentions have a way of changing in the NFL.
So Orton went about his job with the expectation of keeping it. Orton is comfortable enough in his own skin, confident enough in his own play, to not become the petty, embittered veteran who freezes out the immensely hyped rookie.
"Not at all," Tebow said. "He hasn't been deterred by anything that's happened. He's done a great job. We have a great relationship. So does Brady. It's all been good."
Awkward substitution
It's possible for a quarterback to play on a one-year contract and still feel secure. Orton will have a chance to prove it by deferring to the kid, who will have a richer, five-year contract by the time he reports to training camp.
The assumption is McDan-iels will devise short-yardage, goal-line or red-zone plays for Tebow, a superb, double-option threat of run and pass.
Coming out of games for a couple of plays or five can be awkward for the established starter. In Philadelphia last year, Donovan McNabb said his rhythm was crimped when Michael Vick came in for "wildcat" plays.
Orton, whose strength is making quick, intelligent decisions, and throwing accurately short, is among the league's most efficient throwers in the red zone with 39 touchdown passes against just three interceptions.
Will Orton balk at getting subbed out of the game at key moments for the Tebow package?
"If that's going to help us win games — I know we struggled a little bit on third-down situations in the red zone last year — and if it's that type of plays that can help us win, I'm all for it," Orton said.
Maybe, if he weren't so unflappable, Orton would be easier to replace.
Mike Klis: 303-954-1055 or mklis@denverpost.com
Reliable in the red zone
Broncos rookie quarterback Tim Tebow may run the occasional red-zone package, but it's not like starter Kyle Orton doesn't know how to play there. The NFL's best TD-interception, red-zone ratios among active QBs:
Quarterback TD Int. Ratio
Philip Rivers 68 2 34-1
Tom Brady 151 7 21.6-1
Chad Pennington 69 4 17.3-1
Donovan McNabb 141 10 14.1-1
Kyle Orton 39 3 13-1
http://www.denverpost.com/premium/broncos/ci_15291513
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Jrwiz
