Dallas Cowboys to release Kyle Orton

It looked as though Dallas Cowboys’ reserve quarterback Kyle Orton’s days were numbered in Dallas.

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Orton had not been in contact and with the Cowboys and the Cowboys went quarterback hunting in the offseason, looking for a solid backup to starter Tony Romo. They wound up striking a deal with former Cleveland Browns’ first round pick and starting quarterback Brandon Weeden. Weeden was let go in favor of Brian Hoyer and 2014 first round pick Johnny Manziel.

Still, the Cowboys maintained they wanted to keep Orton and those in the know believed Orton would eventually report to the Cowboys.

Apparently, that line of thinking has changed.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Cowboys are set to release Orton.

Orton, a former Purdue Boilermakes’ star, was originally selected by the Chicago Bears with the 106th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft.  He fared well serving as a backup and a spot starter behind Rex Grossman, playing in 33 games in four years with the Bears. He left to become the Denver Broncos’ starter in 2009 (after the Broncos traded quarterback Jay Cutler to the Bears). He was cut in 2011 in favor of Tim Tebow. After four games with the Kansas City Chiefs to finish the 2011 season, he joined the Cowboys.

Orton completed 33 of 51 passes for 398 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions last season. In his career, he has completed 1,326 of 2,265 passes for 15,019 yards with 83 touchdowns and 59 interceptions.