Woody Paige Does It Again

You're tired of it. I'm tired of it. Yet I keep writing about it because Woody Paige keeps writing about it. Woody Paige doesn't like Kyle Orton. He has no other solution for the Broncos, but that can't stop him from not liking Orton because Orton is a "loser." Sure, Orton has thrown for a ton of yards this year, but that doesn't tell the whole truth like Woody Paige does. He is the bringer-of-truth for all things quarterback-related for the Broncos.

Kyle Orton — we're informed, ad infinitum — is on pace to challenge Dan Marino's all-time, NFL single-season passing record of 5,084 yards.

This is the first time I have heard about this. Of course I am not paying attention to how many yards Orton is throwing for, but I still wasn't aware of this.

Kyle Orton — I'm here to notify you — also is on pace to become the only quarterback among the top 10 all-time single-season passing leaders in league history to finish with a losing record.

All Orton's fault. I know it certainly isn't the 25th ranked defense's fault. The same defense that is 30th in rushing yards allowed per game this year. It is also not the running game's fault. Just because the Broncos are averaging 76.8 yards per game on the ground doesn't mean the running game isn't doing its part. Orton is just being a selfish prick by throwing the ball too much.

At the midpoint of the 2010 season, and 24 games into his term as the Broncos' quarterback, Orton has proved he is a passer — and a loser.

It is really weird how Orton is now a quarterback that is a loser. When he was with the Bears and went 10-5 in his rookie season he was seen as a quarterback who was a winner and managed the game well. I wonder what the difference in Orton being a winner in Chicago and a loser in Denver, even though he is playing much better in Denver?

(Woody Paige sits down and thinks about this for 17 hours, can't figure it out, so he blames Kyle Orton anyway)

I'll give a hint in what makes the difference in a quarterback that is a winner and a loser. The team around him. Like Orton had a good one in Chicago and he doesn't in Denver.

Just before the season, some rich yahoo who claimed to be one of Orton's closest friends stopped me at a local golf course and shrieked: "When you gonna give Kyle Orton credit?"

My answer: "Not today. When he deserves it."

When does he deserve it? Never, as long as Tim Tebow is on the roster. As long as there is a Tebow in existence, Kyle Orton has no business taking his rightful spot as the starting quarterback for the Broncos.

I don't generally like rookie quarterbacks starting for an NFL team unless they are absolutely ready to do so. Rookies that are forced into starting before they are ready seem like they would have a high probability of flaming out of the league. Tebow isn't ready. It is fine to use him some during a game, but Orton has played well and is the best option for the Broncos.

Kyle Orton does deserve credit for fooling the Broncos into extending his contract to two years for $11.4 million ($8.1 mil guaranteed).

Orton's average. There is no doubt about that. Dude is slinging the ball around well this year though. He has no running game, very little defense, and he needs help around him for the Broncos team to have any sort of success.

Jay Cutler established the Broncos' single-season passing mark at 4,526 yards in 2008. The Broncos were 8-8. So much for that stat.

So is Woody Paige suggesting a quarterback who throws for a lot of yardage will be on a team that doesn't win a lot of games? I think 2008 Tom Brady would have something to say about that.

It's amazing to me certain sportswriters can't understand the concept that there is more than one phase to the game of football and all of the phases of football are combined together to determine whether a team is successful or not. Orton is an average quarterback, but he has no running game, and Tim Tebow isn't the guy to help the Broncos with that. He can only run the ball so many times until the defense no longer gets fooled.

(Jake Plummer is No. 2, and where's he?)

Nice completely flawed reasoning. Plummer is retired and this has nothing to do with this discussion. The idea Plummer should still be playing or in the Hall of Fame because he is 2nd in passing yards in a season for the Broncos is idiocy.

"Joe Montana won a lot of Super Bowls, but where's he at now?"

Coach Josh McDaniels, The QB Maker, was being prodded by the media early in the season to compliment Orton's impressive statistical start. McDaniels replied that he judged quarterbacks on victories, third- and fourth-down conversions and scoring inside the 20-yard line.

He should have added success in the fourth quarter.

Because Josh McDaniels needs to know the exact statistics to cherry pick in order to make Kyle Orton look bad.

"Josh McDaniels says Kyle Orton is playing well this year and should have more victories if he could just get a running game and convert more fourth downs. But what about his cooking skills? Kyle Orton is a terrible cook. No one wants to come to his house to eat dinner. Josh McDaniels forgets this little fact."

So, using McDaniels' three criteria, and my additional measure of goodness:

The Broncos are 2-6, with four consecutive losses.

I'm pretty sure I write this every week, but here goes again. The Broncos defense has given up 31, 24, 59, and 24 points in these games. They gave up 29 points on Sunday to the Chiefs. For the third time, Orton is completely average, but you can't pin the Broncos record on him.

The Broncos are 22nd overall in the league in third- down conversions — 36.6 percent — and have made first downs on fourth downs 27.3 percent of the time (3-of-11), 26th in the NFL.

I don't have the statistics to prove or disprove this, but I wonder how far the Broncos have on-average to go on third down? Considering they are averaging 76 rushing yards per game I will assume they have long third down conversions they have to convert. I've seen first hand how a team that can't run the ball can't convert third downs as easily.

The Broncos are 20th in red-zone scoring (41.3 percent), or 1.5 touchdowns or field goals for every 3.6 trips to the red zone.

I hate to sound like a broken record, though this entire post probably feels that way, but it is hard to score when the defense knows you can't run the ball.

(Opponents have scored 69.5 percent.)

Dammit Kyle Orton! Learn to play linebacker better to prevent the other team from scoring!

In fourth quarters, the Broncos have managed four touchdowns and four field goals. They also have eight punts, two fumbles, three interceptions, four lame efforts on fourth down, one Kyle Orton kneel down (in a victory) and one game in which the clock ran out on the Broncos. In 26 fourth- quarter possessions when the Broncos tried to score, they had a success rate of 30.8 percent.

So not only is Kyle Orton a loser, but he is also a choker. Maybe the Broncos should see if Derek Jeter could play some quarterback. I hear he is a free agent and is available. He's so clutch.

Examine the fourth quarter offensive possessions game-by-game (backward):

The 24-16 loss to the 49ers — field goal, punt, fumble by Orton, touchdown pass by Orton, interception.

So of the 16 points the Broncos scored 10 of them were in the fourth quarter? What a pathetic loser!

The 59-14 loss to the Raiders — punt, punt, turnover on downs.

Really? Were the Broncos going to come back in this game or something during the fourth quarter down by thirty points?

The 31-17 loss to the Ravens — field goal, punt, touchdown.

So the Broncos scored 10 of their 17 points in the fourth quarter? That sounds like it is pretty good.

In fact, Denver has scored 154 points this year (as of the time Woody wrote this column) and if the Broncos have scored 4 touchdowns and 4 field goals in the fourth quarter this year like Woody Paige says then that means they have scored 40 points in the 4th quarter. That's a little bit below 26% of their points coming in this quarter. It doesn't seem like scoring in the 4th quarter is a huge issue for the Broncos.

Very ugly. Four of those games may have been won without fourth-quarter interceptions, fumbles and mistakes, and a pass interference call at the goal line (vs. the Jets).

So it hasn't been the overall incompetence of the quarterbacking that has been the problem, but mistakes by the team? Orton is certainly at fault, but saying his passing statistics are misleading is misleading in itself. The Broncos have to gain yardage on offense in some manner and they haven't been able to do it on the ground.

It must be brought up again that in those eight games, the Broncos have scored one touchdown (against the Seahawks) in the opening quarter. They are averaging fewer than three points for the combined first and fourth quarters this season.

Orton will never star in a movie titled "A Man For All Quarters."

Then what is the answer? Other than taking time out of his busy schedule making bad puns for his articles, I wonder if Woody Paige can give us the solution to this problem? Is it to put Tebow in the starting quarterback position? If so, I want to see that and then compare how he does to Orton.

He certainly isn't completely to blame for a season gone in the tank. McDaniels, the offensive line, the entire defense and multiple injuries share in the responsibility, but the quarterback is the Most Important Man.

Plus he is the guy blocking the God of Gods, the Men of all Men, the Inspirational Virgin Leader...Tim Tebow. Woody Paige would throw John Elway under the bus if it meant getting Tebow some playing time.

Orton has been able to throw up and down the field, but he's not engineering victories.

Yes, he needs to "engineer victories"...whatever the hell this actually entails. My guess would be this involves having a better defense and running game. Orton isn't a guy who can carry a team on his back. I don't know at what point it was assumed he could do this. There are maybe 5-6 quarterbacks that could win 10+ games with this Broncos team and Orton isn't one of them. To act like he is a quarterback who doesn't need help from his defense or a running game is just not true. Of course painting Orton as a quarterback who isn't up to the task of winning games around a bad time is what gets Woody Paige off...when Orton NEVER has been a quarterback who can do it on his own.

Woody is accusing a career supporting actor of not being able to carry a movie franchise.

Orton just might set the record for most passing yards by season's end, or he might just end up on the bench at the end of the season. Either way, how hollow.

Does Woody Paige think Drew Brees was a loser when he almost broke the passing yards record going 8-8 with the Saints in 2008? I doubt he thinks that Brees was a loser for almost breaking the passing yards record and not having a winning record.

He's holding Orton up to a standard that Orton doesn't have the skill to match. Why isn't Orton winning more games? Because the team around him isn't good enough for him to win more games. He's not a guy who can win games with a shitty team around him.