The Vikings have a conundrum on their hands, to say the least. Jared Allen, a future Hall of Fame defensive end and an iconic Vikings player is coming off multiple surgeries and is in the last year of his contract. Former All-Pro defensive tackle Kevin Williams is also on the last year of his deal. Adrian Peterson is superhuman, but he's 28 and his violent style of running will ensure that he doesn't stick around forever. These players all deserve to be mentioned among the best all-time at their position, but they all have one notable flaw on their resume: no rings. None of them have ever stood underneath a confetti rain or hoisted a polished silver trophy above their head after a hard-fought victory on the final Sunday of the season. None of them have even reached that stage, the closest they have ever been was that ill-fated Sunday in New Orleans in the NFC Championship Game where Brett Favre's body hurt almost as much as fan's hearts. The Vikings want to show the world the talented roster they've developed over the last half-decade, arguably the most talented in their division outside of one position: quarterback. As much as the Vikings would love for Allen, Williams and Peterson to pave the way for a championship season that's simply not how the modern NFL works. The Vikings went 3-13 in Allen's best season as a pro. Adrian had arguably the best season for a running back ever but he couldn't run the Vikings to a playoff win. If the Vikings want to take the next step, it's on their quarterback: Christian Ponder. This article is intended to be a holistic view of the man the Vikings took a chance on in 2011, the man whose ups-and-downs last season made him look like the Power Tower. The man the Vikings are counting on to lead them in 2013.
Christian Ponder came to the Vikings with the 12th overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft. The Brett Favre era had just ended and Minnesota's championship dreams were dead less than a year after optimism was so high entering Favre's second year with the team. Many pundits were surprised by the Vikings' pick, as most media analysts had Ponder being drafted at least half a round too early, but apparently the Vikings felt sure he was their guy, and history shows know one will later criticize you for taking a quarterback too early if he pans out for you. The Washington Redskins (who had the 16th overall pick that year) also had reported interest in Ponder, which may have forced Minnesota's hand. While it has also become popular to bash the pick in Minnesota, the Vikings truly may have been in a no-win situation as it seems that very few of the crop of 2011 quarterbacks may pan out at the NFL level. Taken ahead of Ponder in the draft were Cam Newton, Jake Locker and Blaine Gabbert; the latter two are in make-or-break seasons this year and have shown far less in their NFL careers than Ponder. Newton has put up far more statistics than Ponder, but has battled immaturity issues and hasn't led his team to the playoffs like Ponder has. Andy Dalton was taken after Ponder and has played more successfully, but still has many questions surrounding him and by no means has a secure job. The one quarterback that has proven successful out of Ponder's class in Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers, taken last out of this group due to his raw ability as a passer, which he quickly developed at the NFL level. The Vikings should take some heat for passing on Kaepernick for Ponder, but it is highly doubtful that Kaepernick would have developed as well in Minnesota as in San Francisco, as he got to learn on the bench for a year from quarterback whisperer Jim Harbaugh and then was able to start on perhaps the most talented roster in the NFL. While fans may want to bash the Vikings' front office for their decision that night, the team did need a quarterback, and in the end there simply may not have been one there for them to pick.
The scouting report on Ponder coming out of college at Florida State is as follows: Three year starter in a pro-style system. Good mechanics and footwork. Solid accuracy on short to intermediate throws, with less on the deep ball, but displays nice touch. Shows questionable decision making. Athletic and able to extend plays. Injury concerns with elbow and throwing shoulder. High character leader with absolutely impeccable intangibles. Bottom line: Potential to be a good, not great, starter. Popular comparison: Chad Pennington.
Two years later and Ponder seems to have proved the scouts about half-right. But right now, they're also half dead-wrong. Ponder's footwork is an absolute mess in the pocket, as often he gets "happy feet" and simply bounces around until hurrying through a throw, never planting to drive the ball. Ponder has also yet to show the standout intangibles that maybe compelled the Vikings to take a chance on him, perhaps hoping his high character approach would bring out the best in others of the team. There is no question that this absolutely has to be Ponder's team, at least from a leadership standpoint, to compete with the powers that be in the National Football League. But in order to be the man, sometimes you have to play like the man, and right now Ponder isn't even living up to his scouting report.
Even though Ponder was considered the most pro-ready prospect in the 2011 draft, the Vikings decided to acquire free agent Donovan McNabb to start the season for them while Ponder would learn behind a veteran starter on the bench. Those plans derailed horribly when McNabb helped blow several halftime leads for the Vikings and through six starts managed to win only one game for the team. With the season already basically lost, the Vikings decided to throw Ponder into the fire as a rookie and he started the final ten games for the team, completing 54 percent of his passes for 1853 yards (6.4 yards per attempt) with 13 touchdowns compared to 13 interceptions. While Ponder did not play spectacularly, the lack of an offensive line around him and the overall lack of talent of the Vikings' roster led to him largely receiving an incomplete grade through year one. The Vikings tried to remedy the situation by drafting highly regarded Matt Kalil with the 4th overall pick in 2012, though the bar was still set at a very low level due to star running back Adrian Peterson's knee injury and overall talk that while the Vikings should improve throughout 2012, their tough division would prevent an above .500 finish.
Ponder and the Vikings aimed to amaze in 2012, surprising nearly everyone to finish with a 10-6 record, good enough for a trip to the playoff. While some might think earning a playoff berth would erase doubts about Ponder, in actuality his sophomore season left analysts with even more questions than answers. For the first five games of the season, Ponder was more than adequate, leading the Vikings to a 4-1 record while only tossing an interception in one game (Adrian Peterson had only one 100 yard game up to that point). Then in the middle of the year, Ponder encountered a steep regression, throwing 10 interceptions in the next seven games, many of them costly to the team. By this time Adrian Peterson was in the heart of his monster MVP season, but Ponder offered AP little to no assistance in the passing game, throwing for under 70 yards twice during this stretch. Ponder's pocket presence wore down, he looked to scramble at the first sign of a bad play, instead of buying more time for his receivers. His footwork became erratic, and he starting aiming the ball rather than forcing it into windows. Most frustrating of all was the fact that Ponder could not take advantage of seeing eight or nine defensive players crowd the line of scrimmage in order to stop Adrian, giving him single coverage on the outside on both sides of the field. While most quarterbacks would have an absolute feast with that coverage, for Ponder it was famine as he compiled five sub-60 passer ratings.
In their last four games the Vikings were at a crossroads. They were 6-6 and faced a daunting schedule to close out the year. Ponder's play was creating a huge fan group to form for his then backup, Joe Webb. With his back to the wall, for the most part Ponder played....adequately. He did not turn the ball over the Vikings next four games but still did not throw more much yardage despite continually seeing single coverage. He did find ways to keep the chains moving each game, so fans were willing to give him a pass, as long as their team was winning and Adrian continued his march of dominance. Their last game of the season was at home against their rival Packers, with a playoff spot on the line, the biggest game of Ponder's short career. For at least one day, Ponder managed to quiet the haters by having the best day of his career, throwing for 234 yards and three touchdowns as the Vikings scored a late field goal to top the Packers 37-34. The numbers almost do not do Ponder justice as he made key throws to help the Vikings win the game, including a deep ball to Jarius Wright that set up a Vikings' score, and a long third down conversion late in the game that led to the Vikings' victory. Adrian of course helped, with almost 200 yards on the day, but Ponder showed that he was capable of stepping it up and providing solid play from the quarterback position. The big question for next season is: can he do it for more than one game? In total, Ponder ended the season completing 62 percent of his passes for 2935 yards and 18 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. A microcosm of his uneven season: eight games of no interceptions, four with multiple. Five sub-60 passer ratings, four over 100. Perhaps scariest of all, Ponder's yards per attempt were third lowest in the league (6.4) and actually decreased from his rookie year, a sure sign of an inability to push the ball down the field.
Ponder's erratic play has split fans into two main camps: those who believe the true Ponder was the one to beat the Packers, and those who believe the true Ponder was the one who lost to them, when he threw two picks at Lambeau that ruined Adrian's 200 yard day. Ponder's defenders last year pointed to his lack of weapons on the outside and offensive Bill Musgrave's questionable play calling skills as reasons why Ponder was unable to succeed last year. Coming into this year Ponder has been provided with former Pro Bowl receiver Greg Jennings in free agency, and jack-of-all-trades receiver Cordarelle Patterson, acquired in the first round of the 2013 NFL draft. The Vikings also now have depth at the position with an un-injured Jerome Simpson and second year pro Jarius Wright much more comfortable in the NFL. Not to mention Ponder has Pro Bowl MVP tight end Kyle Rudolph to throw to over the middle. Weapons can no longer be an excuse. As for the Musgrave argument, was Musgrave just inadequate in failing to open up the playbook, or did Ponder's performances force him to shorten it? The Vikings coaching staff will all be evaluating every single snap Ponder plays this year, as many of their jobs depend on it. The Vikings were patient with Ponder during his struggles last year, but they simply don't have the ability to do that this year with the expectations that come with success. Ponder needs to prove he can get this offense vertical, both in his ability to hit the deep ball and his mechanics, he needs to keep his shoulders parallel, not perpendicular, to the line of the scrimmage so he doesn't bail early on plays. Most importantly, Ponder needs to show the stellar intangibles scouts salivated over during his college career. He needs to take charge of this team and show he can put it on his back rather than dumping the load on Adrian, otherwise he simply won't cut it as an NFL signal caller.
This is the entire book on Christian Ponder, the whole body of evidence. He will be grateful enough to start providing us with even more data to work with, and it shouldn't take long for the Vikings to reach a verdict.
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