Coach John Fox made official what had been apparent since early in Broncos camp: Kyle Orton is his starting quarterback.
Orton was announced as the Week One starter by Fox on Monday, per the Denver Post. Fox would not declare a backup quarterback, with the Brady Quinn-Tim Tebow battle still ongoing. Quinn looks like the slight favorite.
The announcement completes a remarkable four weeks for Orton. It wasn’t so long ago that Orton helped to scuttle a possible trade to the Dolphins by making it clear he didn’t want to re-do his contract.
Orton bet that he could beat out Tim Tebow for Denver’s starting job if he just got the chance to practice, and he was right. Now Orton gets big money in 2011, a starting gig, and free agency next year.
The Broncos will likely have to stay around .500 for Orton to keep his job, and the start to the season looks manageable. Denver opens with home games against the Bengals and Raiders before traveling to Tennessee and Green Bay.