Quarterback Conundrum

Conundrum. Definition: a confusing and difficult problem or question.

In Denver, the Broncos question and problem is who will start at quarterback this season. Will it be Kyle Orton, master of garbage time stats? Or will it be the hyped and determined yet unpredictable and unproven Tim Tebow?

Sure, Kyle Orton threw for over 3,600 yards in 13 games. And yeah, he's thrown 41 touchdowns the last two seasons to only 21 interceptions since coming to Denver. Pretty good on paper.



However, Orton's 11-18 record as a starter in Denver is horrendous. His 21-12 record from Chicago is now a pedestrian 32-30. With the current state of the Broncos, there's no way that record stays above .500 if he starts most of the games for Denver. He was able to put up solid numbers in garbage time. When we needed him to win a game, he stumbled and couldn't be clutch.

Last year's game in Kansas City, we were down 10-6 with a little over eight-and-a-half minutes to play. We get the ball around the 30-35 yard line. Knowshon Moreno was having the best game of his career with over 160 rushing yards so the perfect strategy would have been to keep running--another issue for another blog. Denver didn't rush the ball one time from that point. Instead, Kyle Orton threw 6 straight incompletions (with punts after each three) and may have thrown more before throwing the nail-in-the-coffin interception. We lost 10-6.

Go look up his stats from the Broncos Cardinals game and see how well Orton did against the mighty NFC West powerhouse.

Then there's Tebow. Popular, of course. I'd bet most Broncos fans want Orton traded so Tebow can be the guy whether he'd win more games or not. He started the last three games of the 2010 season (at Oakland, and then against Houston and San Diego). He had some good throws against the Raiders and a sweet run to the endzone on a busted play. Against Houston he led a really bad football team to a second-half comeback win, even throwing for over 300 yards. He almost capped it off with a comeback against the Chargers but came up just short.

Tebow looks like he's got potential but he's unconventional and probably always will be. Like him or not, players rally around a Tim Tebow. He's the fiery leader most would follow into the thick of battle. Kyle Orton? Doesn't seem like it, especially with his inability to be clutch.

The tone for training camp the last three offseasons has been: "Golly, Kyle Orton sure looks good. He's accurate, on time, poised, etc." In practice (see 11-18 as Denver starting QB).

So who starts?

I don't know. Orton has always been master of practice and garbage time but hasn't shown much in games besides numbers. Numbers only matter when they come with wins. However, with Denver's young offensive line, Orton starting is probably the only chance the running game has to be successful. Opposing defensive coordinators would probably stack the box against a Tebow-led offense.

Tebow's unconventional nature is well documented, but he makes plays when things break down. Unfortunately, the Broncos won't be very good so plays will probably break down more often than not. I think if we're not going to be very good, we should see what Tebow can do given more than a few games. Getting rid of the best practice QB could have its issues. Coaches and personnel people could lose credibility within the locker room if players think they're not giving the team the best chance to win.

All I know is I'd rather be really bad with Tim Tebow to get us a better draft pick (Andrew Luck?), than be mediocre (again) with Kyle Orton and still not know whether Tebow can deliver.

Who should start? That's the question.