Kyle Orton will start at quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday unless an injured finger on his throwing hand prevents him from playing.

Interim coach Romeo Crennel said Wednesday that he made the change in an effort to jump start the stagnant offense. Journeyman quarterback Tyler Palko had led the Chiefs to only two touchdowns in four games since taking over for the injured Matt Cassel.

“We made the change and we’ll see how it plays out,” said Crennel, who took over Monday after the firing of Todd Haley. “If it works out with more points on the board, then it’ll be a good change.”

Crennel said that if Orton is unable to go, fifth-round draft pick Ricky Stanzi will start for Kansas City. The rookie out of Iowa has yet to play in a regular-season game.

“Orton is going to play if Orton can play. If Orton cannot play, then I want to see Stanzi, to see what he can do,” Crennel said. “I know it’s tough duty for him. It’ll be a tough duty for him going against the Packers, but as some point he will have to go into the game and he will have to run the team, and if he can run the team that probably bodes well for him.”

Orton took snaps under center with the first-team offense Wednesday during the brief portion of practice that the media was allowed to observe. He was wearing a sleeve on his index finger, which he dislocated on his only play as a member of the Chiefs two weeks ago at Chicago.

Crennel said he made the decision Wednesday morning to switch quarterbacks, let Palko know and then informed general manager Scott Pioli. Crennel said he didn’t want the situation to become an overbearing distraction during a week of pronounced change within the organization.

“They can focus on game plan, they can focus on plays, they can focus on what we need to do to beat Green Bay,” he said. “They’re not focusing on what the coach is going to do, who the quarterback is going to be, is the offense going to be different for this guy or different from that guy. The offense is going to be what it’s going to be, and we’re going to go play football.”

Crennel said he considered waiting until later in the week to make the announcement because he wanted every possible advantage over the Packers, who are 13-0 and chasing a perfect season.

Then it occurred to Crennel that the Packers probably don’t care who’s starting.

“When you look at our guys,” Crennel said, “they look at Tyler and what he’s done the last couple weeks, they look at Orton and know he has a finger, they look at a rookie, so I don’t think they’re shaking in their boots about those choices.”

If both are healthy, who should theKansas City Chiefs start at quarterback??

Read More: Carson Palmer (QB – OAK), Oakland Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs

The Oakland Raiders have apparently made their decision on the question of who will be the starting quarterback this weekend and the answer is Carson Palmer. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Wednesday morning that the Raiders are expected to start Palmer this weekend against the Kansas City Chiefs.

In Tuesday night’s introductory press conference, head coach Hue Jackson wouldn’t say who was starting for the Raiders in Week 7 but on Wednesday morning Raiders offensive coordinator Al Saunders strongly suggested that it would be Palmer.

ESPN’s report confirms what we thought: Palmer is starting.

Saunders talked with 610 Sports in Kansas City on Wednesday morning and his words didn’t bode well for Kyle Boller, the Raiders other option at quarterback.

“He walked out on the field yesterday and everybody kind of looked at everybody and said, ‘You know what, this is a real quarterback.’ That was the comment made by a couple of people as they just watched him throw. It just depends on how quickly he feels comfortable in what we’re doing and that shouldn’t take too long.”

So it’ll be Palmer on Sunday against the Chiefs just five days after the Raiders made the blockbuster trade to acquire him.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — It’s showtime at the Kansas City Chiefs’ camp.

Coach Todd Haley canceled the team’s planned meetings Tuesday morning and sent the team to a local movie theatre. Haley informed the team that he was giving it a bone Tuesday morning. Players then boarded buses and off to the movies they went.

Haley treated his players to the movies toward the end of camp last season as a reward. The Chiefs break camp after Wednesday’s practice. They will resume practice in Kansas City after their preseason game at Baltimore on Friday.

Don’t try to figure out how many snaps each Kansas City Chiefs player will take tonight in their preseason opener.It won’t be worth the effort.Quarterback Matt Cassel said he plans to play and hopes to be on the field against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Arrowhead Stadium. But previewing a preseason game following this tumultuous, one-of-a-kind offseason might be futile.“We’re ready for a game. It’s absolutely time to get going,” Cassel joked following Kansas City’s night practice Wednesday at Missouri Western, the Chiefs’ final public workout before today’s game. “I’m ready to play four quarters; let’s go.”Coach Todd Haley said Wednesday he had not ruled any player out against the Buccaneers.But questions abound over veteran free agents, who started practice only a week ago, and injuries have slowed rookie wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin, defensive end Glenn Dorsey and tight end Tony Moeaki during the first week-plus of training camp. The lengthy lockout skewed the NFL’s offseason and left coaches scrambling to prepare for this unique preseason.“All efforts to evaluate have to be used this year, and we have to do a good job of evaluating,” Haley said. “And we’ve got to find different ways to evaluate because of the rules that are in place for everybody, and it may not be the way it’s always been.“We’re having to adjust a little bit and figure out ways to make sure we get it right on all these guys.”Buccaneers coach Raheem Morris said he expects his starters to play 15-20 snaps, including quarterback Josh Freeman. Haley remained mum on his plans, which is no surprise from the tight-lipped third-year coach. Like most preseason games, backups and rookies should expect to see long looks even if all of the starters are thrust into action.“To be able to have the opportunity to go out there and play under the big lights of the NFL is a dream come true for me, and I’m excited to get out there and make as many plays as I can,” said Chiefs rookie cornerback Jalil Brown, who snagged an interception from Cassel during Wednesday’s night practice.The Chiefs’ rookie group could include third-round pick Justin Houston, one of the last two picks from this year’s draft to sign.Houston debuted last Friday and appeared behind in conditioning upon arrival. He’s mostly worked with the second- and third-team but doesn’t want to discuss his holdout and how it affects his chances to play tonight.“Only thing I can do is be prepared for when coach puts me out there,” Houston said, “and do what I can do when he puts me out there.”The Chiefs ran only six plays of live tackling so far in training camp, and none of those involved the first team.Veterans appear anxious and ready to play but know the reality. In addition to the rookies, Chiefs fans could see the debut of recent acquisitions including defensive tackle Kelly Gregg, wide receiver Steve Breaston, fullback Le’Ron McClain and linebacker Brandon Siler.That list likely won’t include tackle Jared Gaither (6-9, 340), an unrestricted free agent the Chiefs signed away from Baltimore on Thursday.The Ravens’ fifth-round pick of the 2007 NFL Supplemental Draft out of Maryland, Gaither played in 33 regular season games (28 starts) and five postseason contests with Baltimore (2007-10). Gaither missed most of 2009 and all of last year with a back injury but provides an intriguing prospect to add depth and potentially push for a starting spot among a youthful but talented group of offensive linemen.“I feel like our offensive line has developed across the board since Year 1,” Haley said. “They’re developing; they’re getting better; they’re improving. I thought last year throughout the season the offensive line was an area of maybe the best improvement across the board.”Gaither makes it three offseason signings for the Chiefs from Baltimore, the team which eliminated Kansas City in last year’s playoffs, joining Gregg and McClain.The other two have already made a positive impact at Chiefs camp, especially Gregg.The jovial veteran spark plug kept his upbeat routine Wednesday night saying, “Never had a bad day in my life,” while discussing another otherwise mundane practice.Count tonight in his list of good days.“Oh yeah. I can’t wait. Get out there and be on the other side of Arrowhead this time,” Gregg said.Ross Martin can be reached at ross.martin@newspressnow.com