Chicago Bears: Give Orton the Green Light!

Now that the Bears have done everything they can to put themselves out of the playoffs (i.e. blow multiple 4th quarter leads), Kyle Orton should finally get his chance to show what he brings to the table.

Last Thursday, as Rex Grossman squirmed onto Fed Ex field, every Bears fan (including Grossman haters) were probably saying to themselves: "here we go again".  

A hobbled Grossman was an all too familar sight for his first few years. Just when you think he had put his rough past behind him, BOOM!  He goes down again. 

While I am relieved that he does not have to go through surgery, I think it is safe to say Sexy Rexy will probably not be wearing a Bears uniform next season (unless he is willing to take a pay cut). 

So who should be under center for these final three "play for pride games"? Should it be Orton or Griese? 

I personally hope to see number 18 slinging the ball around out there with Griese as the number two. Brian has shown us all why he has never amounted to anything other than a career backup.  He was just as turnover prone as Rex, and clearly has nothing more to offer to this team other than to come in as a reliever. 

After being benched late in 05', Orton hasn't seen any real game time. That said, he has dropped weight and had three years to absorb the system.  He showed a ton of upside at times during his rookie year, and other times looked downright awful (Steelers game).

The offense was very much a one trick pony, with a solid running game but no passing attack to capitalize on the "eight men up" approach that most teams took against the Bears that year.  But to Orton's credit, he never got the chance to see starter reps during training camp and most of the pre-season that year. 

Orton showed significant improvement this past pre-season while playing against 2nd and 3rd stringers, and looked to be in the best "NFL" shape he has ever been in. 

The Bears have many more draft needs other than QB, and now is the time to try and sure up that position by giving Orton the starting job for the rest of the year.  If the Bears can go into the offseason with confidence in Orton, they can cut Rex (or sign him to less money and let him compete for the starting job) and try and tackle the much more demanding problems at O-Line and Safety.

The Bears are playing for pride right now, and it is time to see what the former Purdue star can do for this team.  It would be a shame to see someone who has worked as hard as Orton still have to sit and watch from the sideline. 

Come on Lovie: give us a reason to watch these last three games, and put number 18 under center!