A Tale of Two Ponders and who do we get in 2013?

[losperros]

There's a traditional mentality/rule that many coaches still adhere to that says rookies can't play from Week 1 or even season 1, no matter how many exceptions prove that's bogus year after year (Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, etc.) Many fans also put 100% faith in the coaches in that if a player is not on the field then the player must truly not be ready. I'm not one of those fans. But I'll just say I don't know. Maybe Wright truly wasn't ready until he was unleashed by the coaching staff, but maybe you're right and he should've played earlier? I'm more of a sink or swim type myself so I would've played him, and I hope Patterson does more than just returns this year. I figure the only way he learns is on the job, so let's do it!

Interesting take. I know what you're saying.

You know, what kind of bugs me is that it almost appeared as if Wright was drafted to backup Harvin. That's okay, except it also appeared as if the Vikings perhaps thought Wright was going to be Harvin-lite when he was really a different kind of player, being more of a true receiver and not a hybrid RB/WR/returner.

OTOH, once Wright did start playing we saw him going deep and running a variety of routes. So, perhaps the Vikings knew all along what Wright could do. So why wasn't he doing it? He wasn't ready? Maybe. But I wonder why he was sitting around while an injured Jerome Simpson was hobbling through routes, and Jenkins and Aromashodu weren't lighting up the scoreboards. I mean, look at the energy that emerged in the passing game once Wright finally got on the field. I still wish the Vikings would have put both Harvin and Wright on the field at the same time earlier in the season.

[mondry]

Interesting take. I know what you're saying.

You know, what kind of bugs me is that it almost appeared as if Wright was drafted to backup Harvin. That's okay, except it also appeared as if the Vikings perhaps thought Wright was going to be Harvin-lite when he was really a different kind of player, being more of a true receiver and not a hybrid RB/WR/returner.

OTOH, once Wright did start playing we saw him going deep and running a variety of routes. So, perhaps the Vikings knew all along what Wright could do. So why wasn't he doing it? He wasn't ready? Maybe. But I wonder why he was sitting around while an injured Jerome Simpson was hobbling through routes, and Jenkins and Aromashodu weren't lighting up the scoreboards. I mean, look at the energy that emerged in the passing game once Wright finally got on the field. I still wish the Vikings would have put both Harvin and Wright on the field at the same time earlier in the season.

The thing that's going to bug me is if they still feel wright is only a slot receiver and he rarely see's the field while they throw Patterson in there to mimic the old harvin playbook. Jennings out wide, Simpson same, Patterson in the slot and treating Wright as the #4 WR just because of mentality and false projections on the guys ability.

[losperros]

The thing that's going to bug me is if they still feel wright is only a slot receiver and he rarely see's the field while they throw Patterson in there to mimic the old harvin playbook. Jennings out wide, Simpson same, Patterson in the slot and treating Wright as the #4 WR just because of mentality and false projections on the guys ability.

I have the same concerns, though I find it difficult to believe the Vikings wouldn't want Wright out there contributing to the offense. To this day, even with a healthy Simpson and an explosive guy like Patterson, Wright is probably the team's best deep threat.

Starting Jennings is a must. I can understand that because he's probably the most complete WR on the team. But are the Vikings better off with Simpson or Wright starting opposite of Jennings? I think a case could be made for Wright being the #2 guy.

[mondry]

I have the same concerns, though I find it difficult to believe the Vikings wouldn't want Wright out there contributing to the offense. To this day, even with a healthy Simpson and an explosive guy like Patterson, Wright is probably the team's best deep threat.

Starting Jennings is a must. I can understand that because he's probably the most complete WR on the team. But are the Vikings better off with Simpson or Wright starting opposite of Jennings? I think a case could be made for Wright being the #2 guy.

That's why I said it'll bug me IF that's the way they handle it.

For me I would say it's not even a case that needs to be made, I'd rather have Wright opposite of Jennings over even a healthy simpson. Actually, thinking about it more, it might even be better to have Jennings and Patterson on the outside and put Wright in the slot, that's how highly I feel about Wright being on the field. His numbers extrapolated to a full 16 games would be 708 yards and about 5 touchdowns, that's probably the ceiling for a healthy simpson anyway while Wright is still developing and improving.

I know Speilman has said he wants to put Patterson at one position and keep him there (so he only has to learn one spot at a time) so depending on where that is (probably the slot) it could mean bad things for Wright. I see wright as a victor cruz in the slot though so that could be unfortunate.

That's particularly why I wanted Hopkins so much, then it's pretty clear him and Jennings go outside and Wright can dominate the slot.

[Mothman]

I have the same concerns, though I find it difficult to believe the Vikings wouldn't want Wright out there contributing to the offense. To this day, even with a healthy Simpson and an explosive guy like Patterson, Wright is probably the team's best deep threat.

Starting Jennings is a must. I can understand that because he's probably the most complete WR on the team. But are the Vikings better off with Simpson or Wright starting opposite of Jennings? I think a case could be made for Wright being the #2 guy.

I imagine he'll have a chance to make that case in camp but I think it also depends on what the Vikings want from their split end. It's a position that can be more physically demanding so Wright's size might work against him there. From what I've read, jennings is likely to be the flanker. My guess is Wright will probably be used as a slot receiver more than anything else and who knows how they'll use Patterson? Whatever they do with him, I imagine they'll keep it simple so I don't know if they'll ask him to learn the x, y and z positions all at once or just have him focus on one of them.

[hibbingviking]

they say ponder is the definite starter and cassell is the backup. ponder and cassell should compete for the starting job. competion is healthy, and brings out the best. every player should compete for his position.

[Mothman]

For me I would say it's not even a case that needs to be made, I'd rather have Wright opposite of Jennings over even a healthy simpson. Actually, thinking about it more, it might even be better to have Jennings and Patterson on the outside and put Wright in the slot, that's how highly I feel about Wright being on the field. His numbers extrapolated to a full 16 games would be 708 yards and about 5 touchdowns, that's probably the ceiling for a healthy simpson anyway while Wright is still developing and improving.

Agreed but a lot will depend on how they want to use Jennings. Wright's production last year didn't come from the split end position and I'm not sure he'd be a good fit there. If they're willing to put Jennings at SE on some plays, perhaps they'll line Wright up as a flanker in 2 WR sets.

I know Speilman has said he wants to put Patterson at one position and keep him there (so he only has to learn one spot at a time) so depending on where that is (probably the slot) it could mean bad things for Wright.

That answers the question I hinted at in my previous post.

I think it will probably take them a while to figure out who fits best in what role and if Carlson steps up, we may see fewer 3 WR sets this season. I don't care who they line up at WR with Jennings as long as they're productive. I'm not going to get upset if Wright ends up spending a lot of time on the bench in favor of Simpson and/or Patterson if those players are getting the job done. The ball can only go to one person at a time anyway and Peterson, Jennings and Rudolph need to get touches! Beyond that, I just hope they can find ways to get the other guys involved, especially if they can get the ball to Patterson and let him do his thing.

[VikingLord]

The Sophomore Slump is a real effect. It occurs because pro teams have staff dedicated to figuring out the weaknesses and tendencies of other players. By the time a player hits his 2nd year as a pro, all of those are on gritty display to be whittled down to "playing points" for defensive and offensive advantage.

Ponder's slump started a little late last season because he sat for the 1st half of his rookie season. It took defensive coordinators just a tad bit longer to get his range dialed in so they could clamp down on him more effectively. This becomes the moment of truth for every QB's career arc as a pro. At this point, the QB can no longer get by purely on his limited bag of tricks. He has to evolve. He has to learn to recognize defenses better pre-snap, detect shifting coverages faster, and figure out how to slow things down to where he can regain the upper hand in most situations. It's just a leap from rookie doing what he's told and relying on physical gifts to veteran forcing the issue and making plays with his head as much as his body. It's a big leap, and a lot of very talented guys never make it.

I think Ponder made that leap. His late-season performances were markedly improved, and the situations where he did well were not easy ones (the 2 road wins alone were impressive). He did it without Harvin on the field. Granted, he still has a ways to go, but if I had to bet right now which way his career will evolve at this point I'd bet on it evolving towards him being at least a solid starting-caliber QB for years to come.

[VikeMike]

Anyway, the point is that for a passing game to really click, the parts have to work together and good blocking is going to be as important to success or failure as QB and receiver performance.

Keep banging on that pass protection drum, my friend. I agree -- and you have to be nuts not to. Frankly, I was just too lazy to bring it up on my last comment. Blocking is just as, if not more, important to whatever the offense is trying to do.

It's what makes football so interesting to me: how all the parts have to work together to be successful.

[Mothman]

Keep banging on that pass protection drum, my friend. I agree -- and you have to be nuts not to. Frankly, I was just too lazy to bring it up on my last comment. Blocking is just as, if not more, important to whatever the offense is trying to do.

It's what makes football so interesting to me: how all the parts have to work together to be successful.

I agree. In fact, I find that aspect of the game more and more interesting each year.