While Christian Ponder was certainly not great on Sunday as the Minnesota Vikings lost to the Dallas Cowboys, he did enough to remain the starting quarterback for another week. The team is on a short week as they play again on Thursday meaning head coach Leslie Frazier cannot play the waiting game when it comes to naming a quarterback for the game. After Sunday, the coach is committed to Ponder for at least one more week.
Ponder had a typical game on Sunday. He went 25-of-37 for 236 yards passing while putting up a touchdown and an interception along with a lost fumble. He fell victim to the pass rush several times, but finished with an ok 82.7 quarterback rating. Frazier will keep him under center one more week.
"As we speak, I don't see why we would make a change," Frazier said, via Pioneer Press. "Sometimes after ballgames you make emotional decisions, but I don't see anything that tells me he shouldn't start against the Redskins. He's got to make some good decisions in good situations. He did some good things, but he will tell you he can do better."
Ponder is thrilled that there is no mystery headed into their Week 10 matchup against Washington. He stressed that while losing "sucks", consistency will get the team turned around and winning. The quarterback proved capable of leading several long drives, getting into the redzone numerous times, but failed to actually get scores. The offense was moving, just not scoring.
"It's what I need," Ponder said. "I need to be out there playing. I'm happy that I'm out here playing, but losing sucks. We've got to make sure that we get this turned around and go out there and win."
Running back Adrian Peterson certainly liked what he saw out of Ponder during the game. Peterson rushed for 140 yards on Sunday which certainly helped take the pressure off the quarterback. Considering he had rushed for a combined 150 yards in the past three games, the performance was welcomed by the team.
"I think he came in today and controlled (the offense)" said Peterson. "He was able to manage the offense and make plays when we needed him to make plays. He made the Cowboys' defense play more honest. He performed well today.''
For now, Ponder will get a chance to continue to prove himself as a capable starter. Josh Freeman and Matt Cassel will compete to be the backup. After suffering a concussion, the short week was likely not enough time to get Freeman up to speed.
