Christian Ponder. 2011 first round pick. The one-time franchise quarterback hopeful of the Minnesota Vikings. It hasn't really turned out that way for Ponder or the Vikings. The team had the option of retaining Ponder for a fifth year, the 2015 season, this past spring and they declined. The team is resigned to see how this season goes and decide on Ponder's future with the team after this season. He's still wearing his #7 Vikings jersey. He's still entering training camp as a Vikings quarterback. He's just sitting at a different spot on the depth chart. He entered last year's training camp as the unquestioned starter. He enters this year's training camp in presumably the third spot on the depth chart. There's going to be a quarterback competition in Minnesota this summer and Ponder seems to be a part of it in name only. This quarterback competition is really between the veteran Matt Cassel and new franchise quarterback hopeful Teddy Bridgewater. What happened to Christian Ponder? Well, the NFL happened to Christian Ponder.
Most felt that the Vikings reached when they selected Christian Ponder with the twelfth pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. They obviously liked the potential of Ponder. There was no guarantee that no other team had the same lofty thoughts before the Vikings picked again in the second round. It's easy to say that Ponder was not a first round talent now. It wasn't so clear in 2011. That draft had some unique quarterback talent but there was no guarantees with any of them. There rarely is in the NFL Draft. There were questions swirling around athletic throwers like Cam Newton, Jake Locker, and Colin Kaepernick. Andy Dalton played in a different sort of offense at TCU than those seen in the NFL. Besides, he was "too red-headed." It's true. Some scouts questioned his NFL potential due to the hair on his head. We've come a long way. Ponder was considered the most pro-ready of the quarterback prospects based on the offense in which he played at Florida St. His ceiling may not be as high as some of the others but his floor wasn't as low. Ponder was considered a smart, competent quarterback with some nice physical skills. With Adrian Peterson behind him, a competent Ponder could be very good in Minnesota. Unfortunately he entered the NFL at a terrible time. The ridiculous lockout of 2011 was in full bloom. No offseason workouts. An abbreviated training camp. A rookie head coach in Leslie Frazier and a fairly green offensive coordinator in Bill Musgrave. A lot was working against the rookie Ponder. The Vikings then made all of it worse by making the panicked decision of trading for an indifferent, at best, Donovan McNabb. The Vikings, and probably Ponder, would have been better off if McNabb had never been acquired and the novice quarterback started week one. Instead, McNabb threw bounce passes for six weeks until Ponder was named the starter in week seven. Ponder's ten games as a rookie starter was much like the next two seasons as a second-year and third-year starter. Inconsistent. He showed that he had the talent that led the Vikings to draft him with that twelfth pick. He even looked like a very good NFL quarterback. For a few plays. He had some sustained stretches of fine play. He started all 16 games in 2012 and led the team to the playoffs. Unfortunately, he was injured in that 16th game and missed the playoff game. Adrian Peterson's incredible 2012 season was the main reason for the playoff run but Ponder did play a role in the success. He was terrific in the first four games but he relied heavily upon short passes that became longer gains due to the unique skills of Percy Harvin. Ponder was terrible in the middle of the season. He was terrific again for the last four games when he didn't have Harvin. Consistency. That is what Ponder has lacked in his three NFL seasons. He had those terrific stretches where it looked like he could be the quarterback that the Vikings have been trying to find for a decade. Then, he throws a pick-six. It got to the point where no one wanted to see Ponder check a receiver on the sideline. Too many of his throws to the sideline would just hang in the air. He would throw with touch when he had to throw with zip. He often looked rattled in the pocket. Even scared. He looked to run so often that it seemed to be his preferred option. While Ponder showed promise in 2012, last year was a disaster. He played well enough to win some early games but the defense failed to hold late leads in those games. A concussion to Ponder forced Matt Cassel into action and the beginning of a quarterbacking circus in Minnesota. While he was on the field in 2013, Ponder's greatest problem may have been his inability to utilize Greg Jennings. Cassel didn't have any problems finding the talented, veteran receiver. Ponder's "go-to's" were always receivers near the line of scrimmage, a big tight end in the middle of the field, or running the ball himself. Basically, he too often relied upon "bail-out" plays. Plays that show his lack of confidence and comfort in the pocket. A lack of confidence and comfort that resulted in three years of inconsistency.
Christian Ponder's inconsistency led to the drafting of Teddy Bridgewater this past spring. Bridgewater is the Vikings new franchise quarterback hopeful. He's part of the quarterback competition with Matt Cassel while Ponder seems to be forgotten.
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