Ponder takes big steps in second year

One of the big reasons for Minnesota’s turnaround this season – the Vikings (3-1) have already matched last year’s win total – is the much-improved play of quarterback Christian Ponder.

He’s only throwing for a little over 200 yards per game, which certainly isn’t a lot in today’s high-octane league.

But the marked difference in Ponder’s game can be seen in at least two different areas:

• First, he’s the only starting quarterback in the league this season not to have thrown an interception. Ponder has tossed four touchdown passes and is pick-free through 123 attempts, as opposed to his rookie season, when the Florida State alum through for 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

“He’s making a conscious effort to make good decisions with the ball,” Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said. “When you consider the rate that he was throwing interceptions a year ago, and then you see how’s he is doing now, it’s just a credit to Christian (Ponder) understanding what turnovers do to a team, and then making good decisions under pressure. There have been times where he’s been trapped in the pocket, where a year ago, he might have just tried to throw it up or take a sack, and he’s gotten rid of the ball or he does a very good job of throwing a check-down.”

• Second, Ponder’s completing passes at a 68.3 percent clip through four games this season, a big leap over last year’s 54.3 rate. His higher completion rate, along with his better touchdown-to-interception ratio, have led to a 97.7 quarterback rating through four games – as opposed to 70.1 last year.

“He has really improved across the board,” Frazier said. “I attribute it to this offseason — the fact that he had a chance to spend time with Bill Musgrave, our offensive coordinator, to be around Craig Johnson, our quarterbacks coach, watch tape of last season, and really get a better understanding of our offense and what is expected of him running our offense.

“His confidence is way better than it was, and you would expect that in his second season. It translates to our players. They sense the confidence that he has. I can remember Percy Harvin commenting on it when we were in our offseason practices. He said, ‘Man, coach. Christian seems to be so much more confident, so much more in control.’ That’s what you want to see, because everyone else on offense kind of gravitates to that leader at that position which is the quarterback position.”

Source: Titans Insider