Kyle Orton said after Sunday's game in Oakland he believes his injured ribs will heal enough for him to play in week 16 against the Texans. Even if that's the case, he won't be starting. That role falls to Tim Tebow for another week, interim head coach Eric Studesville announced Monday. "I visited this morning with (owner Pat) Bowlen and (chief operating officer) Joe Ellis," Studesville said about the decision to give Tebow his second career start. "It was a good situation for us. It was a suggestion by me that we go in that direction and they agreed, and that's the direction we're going." Studesville cited the high quality of Tebow's play against the Raiders and Orton's still-sore ribs as reasons to keep the rookie atop Denver's QB depth chart.

Fantasy Analysis:

Barring a Tebow injury, I expect we've seen the last of Orton this season. Tebow recorded a pretty solid fantasy day in week 15. He gained 216 total yards -- 78 rushing -- and two scores. We all know about the Texans' defensive deficiencies, especially in the secondary. It's a tad risky to trust Tebow in the championship week of many leagues, but his rushing ability makes him a pretty nice QB2 with upside against Houston. It was also nice to see Brandon Lloyd didn't disappear without Orton. He caught four passes for 79 yards and a touchdown. Against the Texans, consider him a must-start WR2. If Knowshon Moreno 's ribs force him to miss this game, Tebow will almost certainly top his 16 pass attempts from Sunday. Moreno's ribs caused him to miss most of the Oakland game, and Studesville Monday said he's questionable to play versus the Texans. But we'll post updates on his status later in the week.