Todd Haley has been saying that Tyler Palko is the starting quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs all week. So it’s not really surprising to hear that Sports Illustrated’s Peter King agrees that Palko will start the game against the Bears. But King also notes that he believes Orton has a timeline of his own, starting this week against the Bears.
King writes, “Today is the one-week anniversary of Orton’s first practice with the Chiefs. He probably won’t start Sunday at Chicago in his return to Soldier Field, where he started 33 games for the Bears from 2005 through 2008, but he could come off the bench early if Tyler Palko falters. Which Palko likely will do. I expect Orton to start the next two games for Kansas City after this one (at the Jets, home with Green Bay) as the Chiefs try to keep their microscopic hopes alive in the AFC West.”
The interesting note is that Orton might only start the next two games for Kansas City. In short, if the Chiefs are still alive with some sliver of hope for the playoffs, then Orton will continue to be the starter. However if the Chiefs are done by the time that Jets game rolls around, then it’s curious if Ricky Stanzi will be given a chance to grab the last two starts against the Broncos and Raiders. If so, it will mean KC used four quarterbacks this season.