Is Ponder the future for Minnesota?

[nightmarion]

I can't believe the talk from the "Minnesota homers" here. I've watched every single game that Ponder has played and I am very impressed. You have to expect a rookie to make rookie mistakes. Most of the interceptions he's thrown was misreading the defense or due to him still adjusting to the speed of play at this level. Both easily remedied. He has shown good poise in the pocket, he steps up in the pocket, but can also get outside the box. He's a great athlete on his feet, but keeps his eyes down field and is accurate throwing on the run. He is a very smart kid (was actually close to getting his 2nd degree when he declared). He'll learn to read the defenses and adjust to the speed of the game and he'll be a top 10 QB within the next few years.
Obviously the situation has hurt him...poor play calling, TERRIBLE line, less then average WR's as everyone has already stated. That doesn't help. But he has the tangibles, fundamentals, and smarts to become a top end QB.

[Krang]

He has done some positive things, for sure, and yes, you do expect rookies to make mistakes. Like I stated, it would be unfair to give up on him after one year, especially since he hasn't completely sucked ballz. If they were to get a shot at Luck, though, it wouldn't make sense to pass on his potential to stick with Ponder. Now, that is an unlikely scenario, so they will undoubtedly have Ponder at the helm next year.

[Never Veto1]

I think for a 2-13 team he has played extremely well. Get a little O-line help and another WR he can throw to and they are set for a few years offensively. They need to make some big strides so Peterson isn't wasted over the rest of his career though.

[Water Buffalo]

I can't believe the talk from the "Minnesota homers" here. I've watched every single game that Ponder has played and I am very impressed. You have to expect a rookie to make rookie mistakes. Most of the interceptions he's thrown was misreading the defense or due to him still adjusting to the speed of play at this level. Both easily remedied. He has shown good poise in the pocket, he steps up in the pocket, but can also get outside the box. He's a great athlete on his feet, but keeps his eyes down field and is accurate throwing on the run. He is a very smart kid (was actually close to getting his 2nd degree when he declared). He'll learn to read the defenses and adjust to the speed of the game and he'll be a top 10 QB within the next few years.
Obviously the situation has hurt him...poor play calling, TERRIBLE line, less then average WR's as everyone has already stated. That doesn't help. But he has the tangibles, fundamentals, and smarts to become a top end QB.

I absolutely agree that he's done some nice things. He does indeed seem smart, throws accurately outside of the pocket and on the run, and has kept his eyes down field when scrambling. And I do of course agree that he's had to work with a brutally bad offensive line and well below average WRs. It is for these reasons why I think he does of course deserve more time until a full opinion is formed.

But some of the mistakes he's made have been incredibly bad. The guy has been a turnover MACHINE. He's got 14 turnovers in 9 games, and that's very concerning. More concerning is how bad some of his picks have been. He's thrown across his body into traffic numerous times, often leading to interceptions, and then there's his pick 6's that he's regularly thrown on simple out routes when the defender jumps his passes. I watch a lot of football, and he very much looks the part of a rookie on those simple 5 yard out passes. I guess it basically comes down to his decision making, which still has a lot of room for improvement to put it nicely. He's also completing barely over 50% of his passes despite rarely throwing down the field, and that could be a problem too, though it might have something to do with their lack of weapons in the passing game as well.

I just look around the NFL, and the teams having success have Rodgers, Brees, Brady, Big Ben, Peyton Manning (when healthy) etc... These are all guys that sling it 40+ times a game and are truly on pass first teams. The NFL is a passing league, and to really be considered in that elite tier as a team I think that's the type of QB you're going to need. Yes, there are anomalies every year like the 49ers this year, but the consistent successful teams are those with the aforementioned type of QBs. I don't know if Ponder can ever be that guy.

[nightmarion]

See, I feel that Ponder CAN be that guy. The mistakes he's making are easily correctable. And being such a smart guy, I think he can cut down on those mistakes with a full offseason. In part to just maturing as a passer, and more time to build chemistry with his WR's. When he has thrown downfield, he's been fairly accurate. Part of the problem is he gets pressured before the deep ball has time to develop.

[Krang]

Careful not to equate being smart to being "football smart" too readily. While one helps lead to the other, they don't always go hand in hand. It is waaay too early to say Ponder can't fix these things, but he has been beyond brutally bad at times. Just being a smart guy doesn't mean you'll make good decisions under pressure. What doesn't go in his stat line is all the passes he's thrown that really should have been picked off that weren't, of which there have been a LOT. It will be interesting to see if he can cut down on making those choices next year.

[ascherb]

I can't believe the talk from the "Minnesota homers" here. I've watched every single game that Ponder has played and I am very impressed. You have to expect a rookie to make rookie mistakes. Most of the interceptions he's thrown was misreading the defense or due to him still adjusting to the speed of play at this level. Both easily remedied. He has shown good poise in the pocket, he steps up in the pocket, but can also get outside the box. He's a great athlete on his feet, but keeps his eyes down field and is accurate throwing on the run. He is a very smart kid (was actually close to getting his 2nd degree when he declared). He'll learn to read the defenses and adjust to the speed of the game and he'll be a top 10 QB within the next few years.
Obviously the situation has hurt him...poor play calling, TERRIBLE line, less then average WR's as everyone has already stated. That doesn't help. But he has the tangibles, fundamentals, and smarts to become a top end QB.

I already said he has had some good moments. I don't disagree with you on a lot of the points you make.

The only difference between me and you it seems is that you are convinced that Ponder will without a doubt be able to make huge improvements to his ability to read defenses, etc.

I hope he will, but with how little improvement we have seen over the course of the year and how terrible the mistakes he keeps making are, I'm not convinced either way. I'm not saying, he can't improve... I'm saying I'm not as convinced as you are.

[henry1jg]

If I were the GM of the Colts, Rams, or Vikings and I got the #1 overall pick in this years draft, I would trade it without a doubt. With the rookie wage scale, & Andrew Luck receiving such rave reviews, I would let the bidding war commence. Reports are saying that teams would be willing to part with three, maybe even four 1st round picks to get 1.01! THAT is how I would want to build my team. Just imagine having six or seven 1st round picks the next three years, on top of your other draft picks.

I do understand that Luck has the potential to be a once in a generation type talent, but we must also remember that this is not a guarantee. I would be perfectly fine with taking RGIII this year, or even waiting and taking Barkley or Aaron Murray next year, and having two or three more 1sts to help me build my team. The Colts could still roll with Peyton, assuming of course he does play again, (which I'm not so sure he will) and the Vikings need to give Ponder a legitimate chance. They threw him to the wolves with one of the leagues poorest pass blocking o-lines and WR corps, and they wonder why "he's" struggling. The Rams, are in a very similar boat to the Vikes, except they have 78 million reasons to hope that Bradford really is their QB of the future. Like the Vikes, the Rams have a poor o-line and their WR corps outside of Lloyd is dreadful.