It’s also plain that Orton can be more than a No. 2.
If this deal goes through, Buffalo will have added a 31-year-old veteran with 70 career starts. That’s important anywhere, but certainly to a team that considers itself close to competing for a playoff spot. It’s also important to a team whose second-year starter had ups and downs in the preseason. Manuel, despite a 61.0 completion percentage, mustered just a 73.1 passer rating in the preseason. That was worse than the 73.9 for current backup Jeff Tuel.
Bottom line: The Bills needed a better safety net. Orton will be that.
