Thread: Vikings 1st Draft Pick Makes You Ponder

Originally Posted by "singersp" #1095824

Why do we have/need two Christian Ponder threads?

This is about Christian Ponder in relation to the draft.

Personally, I'm opposed to having all these "offical" threads for every player. We have sub-forums to organize and make it easier to find stuff. One player can have so many subjects, take Adrian Peterson for example. His fumbling issue, off-field statements, number of carries and player role has been just a few topics surrounding him. I think they should be divided into separate threads instead of an "Official Adrian Peterson Thread" that's over 100 pages long.

I will bet a lot of money that we will see a lot of different threads on Ponder in the future because one thread is just to little in my opinion.

Originally Posted by "singersp" #1095824

Why do we have/need two Christian Ponder threads?

Yeah, I would hate to have less than 2 months of topics on the first page of any particular forum.

Here is a short video of his throwing arm.
55 yards in the air, on the run, across his body with no wind up.

I think he'll be just fine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-Jar435rnc

A 98 yarder
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwtFkDMbl2w

What Ponder to Kyle Rudolph will look like
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMTdDG6LZT4

last pass was -5 yard line to the 35. I could throw that.


That first pass was nice though. 55 yard ball on the run.

Can we agree though that he doesn't have a rocket. He's not a guy who's going to toss up a hail mary from 70 yards out.

He just needs to make up for it with smarts and accuracy.

One thing does worry me. A description I heard of him "A poor man's Chad Pennington"

I think that the best thing the Vikings can do for Ponder is re-sign Sidney Rice. In 2009, Rice made some pretty unbelievable catches that he had no business catching, The divisional playoff game against the Cowboys is proof enough. Even this year in his first game back he caught a touchdown over the back of the defender (against the bills i think).

One thing that has to be agreed upon when talking about Ponder is his accuracy. He is gonna get the ball to the receiver and Rice is just the receiver to catch the balls that might possibly be a little out of range for other receivers.

Something i've noticed from the videos I've watched on Ponder is that he tends to throw the ball a little high. The receivers always seem to have to get vertical more often than not, and signing a 6' 4" playmaker can only help that small issue.

Originally Posted by "i_bleed_purple" #1096032

One thing does worry me. A description I heard of him "A poor man's Chad Pennington"

I read that too. I also found this, another more in-depth comparison to Pennington:

Player Comparison: Chad Pennington. Recently, Pennington's long, mostly average NFL career likely came to an end on a basketball court when he blew out his knee. Injuries plagued him during his 11 seasons in the league, just like they have bothered Ponder in college. It might be premature to expect Ponder to match Pennington's accuracy at the NFL level where he completed almost two of every three passes out of 2,471 he tossed, but that is what he will try to emulate. Both players are smart, and Ponder should have a steady, if not spectacular run as Pennington did.

In some ways I don't like the comparison because Pennington has been plagued by injuries his whole career and has a decent arm at best.

On the other hand, a comparison to Pennington when he's healthy is a huge compliment. Pennington could have been a Hall of Famer if he had stayed healthy throughout his career. He is extremely smart and accurate. Plus, he's a good team mate, has a good character, and plays though. All of the same could be said about Ponder. Oh yeah... and it doesn't hurt that Pennington is statistically the most accurate QB in NFL history.

The thing I'm the most afraid of is whether Ponder will stay healthy. I said the same about Adrian Peterson and he proved everyone wrong which is pretty amazing seeing how this guy plays. It's funny how Peterson actually is less injured in the NFL than he was in college.

Originally Posted by "mad-dog_six-eight" #1096033

Something i've noticed from the videos I've watched on Ponder is that he tends to throw the ball a little high. The receivers always seem to have to get vertical more often than not, and signing a 6' 4" playmaker can only help that small issue.

I noticed that on some throws too. Maybe signing Sidney Rice and Randy Moss wouldn't be such a bad idea. :lol: No seriously, he also needs to work on hitting his receiver in stride on the deep ball, but he can easily correct those things in my opinion.

Originally Posted by "i_bleed_purple" #1096032

last pass was -5 yard line to the 35. I could throw that.

Yeah, I am sure we all could which is why we were all drafted as high as he was. The point was it was a 98 yard TD and very similar to an NFL play and he laid the ball out there where the WR could catch it in stride and keep going.

That first pass was nice though. 55 yard ball on the run.

Yes, it was a nice pass and there are damn few times we have called plays(Even when Brett or TJ with their cannon arms) that went deeper than that and I will take accuracy and timing over a cannon any day.

Can we agree though that he doesn't have a rocket. He's not a guy who's going to toss up a hail mary from 70 yards out.

And how often is a 70 yard in the air bomb actually attempted?

He just needs to make up for it with smarts and accuracy.

And hopefully he has good instincts.

One thing does worry me. A description I heard of him "A poor man's Chad Pennington"

Pennington was either one of or the most accurate red zone QB's in the history of the NFL. If he can do that we will be fine.