If the Kansas City Chiefs plan to bring in a veteran quarterback in the upcoming NFL free agency period next month, the team could do worse than to bring back the starter who ended the season with two wins in three games in Kyle Orton. With Orton under the center, the Chiefs moved the chains better than they had arguably all season, so it stands to reason that the team might want to pair Orton with Cassel and have the best man win via competition in camp.
Orton is also the sixth best quarterback listed in free agency this off-season by Pro Football Focus. Nathan Jahnke writes, “At times, Orton has looked like a capable NFL quarterback like he did for most of the 2010 season. However, when Orton is bad, he has been terrible and it usually lasts for a number of games. As a Chief, he was able to show he is still capable of performing well, as he helped hand the Packers their only regular-season loss. The question is if he can do that with any consistency. The Chiefs want competition for Matt Cassel, which could come from Orton, or he could find a third home since the start of the 2011 season.”
Orton also seemed to have the confidence of his teammates and perhaps that quick audition near season’s end was enough to win the job at quarterback, just like his interim head coach Romeo Crennel.