There have been two excellent posts on Kyle Orton recently, In Defense of Kyle Orton and In Rebuttal to Kyle Orton. I am a supporter of Orton, but not entirely sure he is the next big thing, he has done a lot of good things, and needs to improve as well. While I am no expert at the game of football and the guys who wrote those articles have been around longer, I do have a major in sociology, so I know a bit about how to read a crowd, and the general moods of a group of people. In this great MHR we have a strong showing of support towards Kyle Orton, and it has suprisingly been growing since the end of the season, even with the arrival of Brady Qiunn. In a poll that was taken about a week or two ago, 75% of fans supported Kyle Orton as the starting quarterback. While most fans support Orton in most part, few are willing to commit to him long term, which is acceptable. Even in the article rebutting (is that a word?) Orton, there was no real harsh critical words against him, mostly pointing out a few weaknesses he has. But since the words and advice of fans really don't count for much, I just wanted to take a look at a few quotes about Orton from players, coaches and analysts. Also I should be noted that in the time I've been doing my research, a part 2 of Orton's defense has been put up, so I'm obviously going to slow. This is not a compilation or a full season review just what I saw in general. Here are a few:

Brian Urlacher: "Kyle Orton might not be the flashiest quarterback, but the guy is a winner, and that formula worked for us. I hate to say it, but that's the truth." Link

Brandon Marshall: Concerning preparation and study "Kyle Orton is is definitely No. 1... he's always in the lab." Link

Brandon Marshall: "Kyle Orton is actually a great quarterback" "Don't doubt him" Link

Josh McDaniels: "He prepares hard.. he's a leader." "I trust him more than most." Link

Okay I realize that these are just a few quotes, but after a while a pattern stuck out, he's patient, smart and a hard worker, the perfectionist as improv88 said. But the thing I found most interesting was after watching post game shows from the Broncos games was that in almost every game, commentators made at least one comment about how they liked Kyle Orton's pocket presence and how he moved in the pocket. The best example was against the Patriots, Here at around 1:00 minute is one times he did a great job. A lot of video I've watched of Orton maneuvering around the pocket, moving up, or out to make passes. This was a shock to me because the sentiment here, and my own opinion was that Orton lacked mobility. Now it should be noted that no one said he was like Ben Rothlisberger or Donovan McNabb, but they never mentioned how he would get tripped or sacked easily or how he got spooked often. More often then not they said that he had good control and that while on the move his short to medium passes were accurate, often referred to as darts or bullets. I was even more surprised to see how many times he scrambled for a first down. I only counted 4 times, but each time, he looked pretty good. Also while I found Orton did struggle with deep balls, it was often when he was pressured or being hit that the balls were often under thrown. While he obviously doesn't have the arm of Jay Cutler or Aaron Rodgers, his arm was pretty decent all season, only struggling on occasion to complete deep passes. But it isn't his strong point.

For the first six weeks he was even mentioned in Pro Bowl and MVP talks, and with how many players left the Pro Bowl, Orton had better seasons than Vince Young or David Gerrard, so if the Pro Bowl was selected on skill Orton would have at least been an alternate or taken the place of either of those two.

While I am no expert on football, and these are just a few quotes, but I as I went back and looked at the season, already knowing the outcome so I don't have to worry I can just watch, I found Orton to be a safe, secure, and good quarterback. I was deceived by those who said Orton was completely immobile, but I found he was a fairly decent pocket passer, much better than we give him credit for. I will not that the first two games of the season as well as the three after he injured his ankle, he played a bit softer on it, but that is acceptable considering he often returned too soon from his injuries. While not a big play maker often, he plays very smart football, his number one compliment, and he is respected by his team. From what I saw, his biggest problem was finding rhythm, especially if he was pressured. Orton's not perfect, but he's a pretty good quarterback. Now I realize that many might view the past games differently, I just wanted to listen, read and watch what experts had to say about him, cause I figure they are smarter then me.