GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Since it was installed in January, the Minnesota Vikings' new coaching staff has taken numerous opportunities to point out that Christian Ponder was better than he was made out to be. Offensive coordinator Norv Turner said it when he was first introduced in February, and again at the Vikings' mandatory minicamp in June.
When Ponder was booed during his appearance in the Vikings' second preseason game, coach Mike Zimmer said Ponder had "improved a lot since we got him," and Turner scolded fans for castigating a player who was "going to be valuable to our team."
Ponder finally got his chance to prove his coaches right Thursday night, to show how he'd grown as a quarterback in Turner's offense, in front of a national television audience. What transpired instead was the kind of game Vikings fans have seen all too often from Ponder. After a 42-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers, it's fair to wonder when -- or if -- Ponder will get another chance to change the narrative.
"I don't know when it's going to happen next. That's what stinks about not playing well tonight," Ponder said. "Who knows? But I've got to do a better job of trying to prepare myself, and be ready for the next opportunity."
Rookie Teddy Bridgewater is likely to return for the Vikings' next game against the Detroit Lions on Oct. 12, and he'll have the job for the rest of the season as long as he's healthy. In his first start against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 4, Bridgewater already showed many of the things -- an ability to keep his eyes downfield while stepping up in the pocket, decisiveness in the face of pressure and an ability to avoid turnovers -- that Ponder failed to display in three seasons as the Vikings' starting quarterback. Those same shortcomings were on display Thursday night in a game the Vikings trailed 28-0 at halftime and 42-0 after three quarters.
Ponder looked skittish in the pocket, though the Packers' blitz packages gave his offensive line plenty of trouble. He missed an open Jarius Wright on a deep ball in the first quarter after he had ample time to throw, and he threw a first-down screen too high for Jerick McKinnon on the Vikings' next drive. He was sacked six times and threw two interceptions -- one that Julius Peppers returned for a touchdown after Packers defensive end Luther Robinson tipped the ball and one that linebacker Jamari Lattimore picked off after Ponder double-clutched and threw behind McKinnon.
"I shouldn't have thrown it. I should have ate that ball, or been more accurate with it," Ponder said of the second interception. "It was an option route. I just wasn't sure what was going to happen."
And four days after Bridgewater had revived the Vikings' deep passing game, it regressed under Ponder. He hit just 11 of his 23 throws that traveled more than 5 yards downfield, according to ESPN Stats & Information research, and both of his interceptions came on those throws. Last Sunday, Bridgewater went 9-for-14 for 176 yards on such throws.
"He was behind receivers a few times. He was over receivers a few times. He didn't look comfortable in the pocket to me," Zimmer said.
It was Ponder's first meaningful action since last December, and it came after he'd gotten his first three days of significant practice snaps this season. But Ponder said he felt comfortable with the game plan, believed he had enough time to prepare and wasn't fazed by the speed of the game or the weather on a soggy night at Lambeau Field.
If Bridgewater starts the rest of the year and Ponder heads into free agency with Thursday's game as his final piece of work, he'll have trouble creating much of a market for himself. Zimmer is fond of saying faith is belief without proof; the belief the Vikings had professed in Ponder went unproven on Thursday.
"I'll take the heat," Ponder said. "Two turnovers, I'm missing throws. I've got to do a better job in the pocket, moving around and hitting guys. I'll take the blame."
