vikings/nfl

Ponder keeps saying that he has to play smarter. At some point he has to quit saying and actually do it.

He's got that perfect mixture of Joey Harrington and Tim Couch in him, it's been breathtaking to watch him develop. I don't want to throw any proposterous statements out there but we may have the second coming of Trent Dilfer on our hands.

Do you really think Ponder should forget about his latest dismal start? I think that's the problem entirely. Ponder needs to learn from his maistakes...he needs to know exactly what he's done wrong...and he needs to take steps to not repeat them again. That's where the angst from Vikings fans is coming from: Ponder repeats his same mistakes over and over again. He's playing without enough confidence, he's holding onto the ball too long...and he's not being smart with the football. Ponder simply can't play this poorly going forward. Not if the Vikings want to win football games that is.

Looks like the Bears still have sole possesion of first place in the NFC North Division. No matter what Ponder does the vikings do not have the talent to keep up with a defense like the Bears have.

It isn't the decisions, it's his accuracy on the run. Both picks Sunday came on scrambles when he overthrew wide open receivers and the balls floated into the arms of waiting DBs. He overthrew targets on a couple designed rollouts as well. Come to think of it, didn't one of his INTs in Washington occur on a scramble and overthrow as well?

I agree with this take. Just get him back out there and let him redeem himself. This kid can either do that or the Vikes need to make the decision, swing and miss on this guy, or growing pains? I truly believe it is the latter, and the kid comes out and proves it. Skol Vikes!

We need to get Brett back to provide the missing link to get us to the playoffs. Ponder shows no signs of getting the job done.

Vikes fans on these boards are too hard on Ponder too soon. I am not saying that he will be Aaron Rodgers, but I am saying the jury is still out. He has only gotten about 16 starts at this point. His numbers will never be huge as long as the Vikes run conservative gameplans with a trustworthy defense. First step: He has to stop the bizarre, squirting, overthrows on his touch passes while on the move.

Ponder doesn't have the skills necessary for a NFL QB. Simply watch some of the other QBs and you will understand. There are moments in every football game where the QB is required to thread the needle, but Ponder doesn't have either the arm strength or the accuracy to accomplish that task. Just watch Rodgers, Big Ben and even Cutler. The receivers are never going to be wide open, because the defenders are usually very fast and athletic. Thus, it is always important for the the QB to thread the needle more often than not to move the football consistently down the field. Ponder doesn't have that skill set.

When anyone makes a comparison with Ponder and Rodgers in any way please try to keep in mind that Rodgers wasn't even on the field until his 4th year. We're also looking at a conservative offensive coordinator and head coach who are in large part handcuffing Ponder with a conservative game plan where Ponder is nothing but a game manager who isn't supposed to make mistakes for most of the games he's playing in. He has reason to be tight when the offensive game plan never opens up. Keep in mind also that Musgrave is being criticized for being too conservative here in Minnesota just like he was in Atlanta before they had enough of it and let him walk. Musgrave did however oversee Matt Ryan long enough to help him develope into a very good quarterback. The idea is that Musgrave does that with Ponder also while using that same game plan which means no passes of more than 20 yards. If you don't believe me than check out the Falcons offensive history on the field with Musgrave.