5 Potential Destinations for Kyle Orton

So it begins...

John Fox and his coaching staff met last night to discuss who would be the Broncos starting quarterback after the bye week in Miami. Early Tuesday morning, Fox made it official that Tim Tebow is going to be the Broncos starter—and it couldn’t be more fitting.

At the beginning of the season, the Miami Dolphins had scheduled to honor the 2008 Florida Gators when the Broncos come to town on October 23, which just so happens to be Tim Tebow's first start of the year. This is the same Florida team that Tebow led to a national championship. The Broncos couldn’t have hand-picked a better away game to have Tebow make his 2011 season debut at starting quarterback.

But enough is being debated and over-analyzed about Tebow and if he can be the long-term franchise quarterback that the Denver Broncos have been looking for since John Elway rode off into the sunset. What are the Broncos to do with Kyle Orton now? It is time for them to cut ties and try and move him for what they can get.

Here are 5 potential teams that would at least answer the phone if Broncos GM, Brian Xanders, called to inquire about a trade for Orton:

Washington Redskins

With the Redskins leading the NFC East and the Cowboys, Giants and Eagles dealing with their own problems, Washington is in a prime position to take a strangle hold of their division. Kyle Orton has proved throughout his career that his strength is managing an offensive game plan and not taking to many risks outside of it. That is the exact model the Redskins have used for Rex Grossman.

He has been effective as of late but the Redskins have to know that “Sexy Rexy” has an expiration date on him. Adding Orton to their depth chart gives head coach Mike Shanahan some insurance late in the season. This is the team that makes the most sense for Orton to be traded to.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars have been seeing what they have in Blaine Gabbert. Through four games he has thrown three touchdowns and two interceptions, completed fewer than 50 percent of his throws, and has a quarterback rating of 71.2. When Jacksonville abruptly cut veteran quarterback David Garrard to start the season, it was as much of a financial decision as it was a football move.

The Jaguars could use Orton as a backup veteran to provide security for young Blaine Gabbert. Also, with having an effective running back to hand off to in Maurice Jones-Drew, Kyle Orton could help the Jaguars play action offense immensely.

Miami Dolphins

It’s kind of funny how things come full circle. The Dolphins were extremely interested in making a move for Orton’s services during the shortened offseason and if he would have accepted their extension offer, Kyle Orton would have a starting quarterback job for them right now. But, instead the Dolphins elected to go with Chad Henne who went down with a season ending injury two weeks ago.

Now Miami is left with NFL journeyman Matt Moore as their quarterback and Orton is back to warming the bench for the Broncos. The Dolphins could use the veteran presence of Orton and could become more interested in him if the Moore experiment goes south.

Seattle Seahawks

With uncertainty about how severe Tarvaris Jackson’s pectoral muscle strain is and a low-level of confidence in Charlie Whitehurst, they could be interested in renting Orton for the season. Orton’s contract is set to expire at the end of this season, so it could be tempting for the Seahawks to see what they can get out of Kyle Orton for the remainder of the year.

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts are definitely a legitimate player in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes and Peyton Manning is still on the mend. However, trading for Kyle Orton will help their quarterback depth and put a veteran player behind Curtis Painter.

The Broncos will be looking for a get-what-you-can kind of deal just to move on from the Orton-era and prevent chemistry issues from developing in the locker room. This means that the Colts could get a veteran quarterback on their roster for a cheap price (5^th or 6^th round pick and possibly cash) and only signed on until the end of the year.

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