"When the critics line up to assail Kyle Orton, there is one familiar refrain: He can't score!

Well, hear this: The Broncos' starting offense has scored plenty through three preseason games as it works to rectify one of the biggest offensive deficiencies in recent years.

Orton has led the first-team offense to 34 points — nearly half of the Broncos' preseason total — in about five quarters of work in the three games.

"We've got a very good offense, and like I told those guys, there aren't going to be too many teams that can slow us down for four quarters," Orton said.

Since the offense settled for a chip-shot field goal in the preseason opener at Dallas, Orton has thrown two touchdown passes and running back Willis McGahee has rushed into the end zone for two more scores (and also caught a TD pass). The final points came on a 57-yard Matt Prater? field goal in the second quarter Saturday against Seattle.

Sure, preseason stats mean little, but for an offense that has put up big numbers between the 20-yard lines but struggled to score touchdowns in 2010, this is certainly progress.

The Broncos ranked No. 13 in total yards a year ago, but only No. 19 in scoring. The offense scored touchdowns on 29 of their 52 trips into the red zone — a mediocre 56 percent."