Sure, Kyle Orton played better than he ever had in his career last season but it still doesn’t appear that he’s a big difference maker at QB.  The 26-year old Orton played in 15 games (all starts) last season for the Bears and he completed 272 of 465 passes (58.2%) for 2,972 yards with 18 TD passes and 12 interceptions (79.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 24 times for 49 yards (2.0 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  Orton has now played in 33 games (all starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 505 of 913 passes (55.3%) for 5,319 yards with 30 TD passes and 27 interceptions (71.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 53 times for 92 yards (1.7 ypc) with 3 TD runs.

28-year old Rex Grossman needs to go.  He played in 4 games (1 start) for the Bears last season and he completed 32 of 62 passes (51.6%) for 257 yards with 2 TD passes and 2 interceptions (59.7 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 3 times for 4 yards (1.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  Grossman has now played in 36 games (31 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 521 of 962 passes (54.2%) for 6,164 yards with 33 TD passes and 35 interceptions (70.2 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 55 times for 80 yards (1.5 ypc) with 3 TD runs. 

Even if the Bears think Kyle Orton can get them to the Promised Land they must find a better backup than Rex Grossman in 2009.