Bears fans need to keep on lovin' Kyle Orton

We've done more than our fair share of ribbing QB Kyle Orton since he headed to Denver as part of a trade with the Bears for Jay Cutler. But despite the party-dude reputation KO garnered during his time in Chi-town, plenty of the Bears faithful still have a soft spot...

By Michael Roberts

October 9, 2009

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "12017618",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17242653",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261320",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261321",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

We've done more than our fair share of ribbing QB Kyle Orton since he headed to Denver as part of a trade with the Bears for Jay Cutler. But despite the party-dude reputation KO garnered during his time in Chi-town, plenty of the Bears faithful still have a soft spot for him personally, if not as a field general. Witness "We Should All Root for Orton," a piece on Chicago Now's Da' Bears Blog. Author Jeff Hughes disagrees with Chicago Sun-Times columnist Neil Hayes' contention that the trade's essentially a draw at this point -- Jay rules! But he doesn't make this argument at Orton's expense. Hughes writes:

I remember Kyle Orton getting benched against Atlanta in 2005 during a game he was winning. I remember him being demoted from ten wins to third string. You know what else I remember? No complaining. No comments. Just hard work and a ballplayer waiting for his chance.

He's got it now -- against New England on Sunday. But at least he'll have fans from two cities cheering him on.

KEEP WESTWORD FREE... Since we started Westword, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Denver, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.

Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

Contact: Michael Roberts

Follow:

Facebook: 111180895657427

Twitter: @mikerobertscolo