Returning QB job to Ponder would put Frazier’s own at risk

It’s been a tough week for the Minnesota sports fan, or at least the ones who believe in accountability and the possibility that someone should have to produce some results in order to hang onto their jobs.

On Monday, Ron Gardenhire paid the price for three 90-plus loss seasons by being rewarded … well, when you have to manage this mismanaged roster of fringe AAA talent I’m not sure it’s a reward, but nonetheless, was rewarded with a two-year contract extension.

I’m not sure the 270-plus loss trio of seasons is all on Gardenhire. He can only manage the guys management gets him. Terry Ryan and the Pohlad family have to shoulder much of the blame, which Ryan acknowledged in extending Gardenhire’s position. But there also hasn’t been a lot of on-field improvement over the last couple years and many – myself included – think it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to simply see a new voice heading up the organization.

Then on Tuesday Vikings head coach Leslie Frazier announced against all odds that Christian Ponder remains the Vikings quarterback as long as he is healthy. This mind-blowing revelation follows postgame press comments where team leaders like Adrian Peterson eluded none-to-subtly who that they would like to see Matt Cassel retain the job.

I understand that in ideal situations, starters don’t lose their jobs to injuries – though that isn’t exactly a hard-and-fast rule by any stretch (see Colin Kaepernick v Alex Smith, 2012 San Francisco 49ers). And I understand that nobody will be carving a bronzed bust for Cassel in Canton, Ohio anytime in the near future.

But Ponder, in his third year, continues to display many of the same shortcomings and make many of the same mistakes that he did in his first half-dozen starts as a rookie in 2011. Cassel, far from perfect last week, was able to erase Greg Jennings’ name from the witness protection program. The downfield passing game was, at least, existent. And the offense, for the first time since 2012, was able to build a lead big enough to allow some of the team’s defensive playmakers to tee off on Steelers’ QB Ben Roethlisberger, hurrying him constantly and forcing him into mistakes.

The only way this move makes sense is if the Vikings of 2013 are throwing in the towel like the Cleveland Browns did two weeks ago in trading RB Trent Richardson in full-blown “Tank for Teddy (Bridgewater) or Tajh (Boyd)” mode, because if Ponder takes the field in two weeks against Carolina, the Metrodome is going to explode in boos.

Now, the team is on its bye week after returning from London. There is still plenty of time for Frazier to change his mind. And Frazier did give himself some wiggle room in qualifying Ponder’s position – he is the quarterback IF he is healthy. Ribs can take a long time to heal, particularly if the trainers have been asked to make sure it takes an extra long while.

But this soft approach toward Ponder really makes me curious. Why are they dancing so daintily around their QB’s feelings? He is not doing the job and someone else who came in when he got hurt made the entire team play better. If Ponder’s feelings are too fragile to deal with that reality, I even further question whether he is right for the job.

But even if the coach is just sticking far too closely to the overused cliché about injured players retaining their starting jobs upon return, it should not matter in this case. For the sanctity of the season and the sanity of the fans, Vikings coaches really have only one choice to make: Make Matt the king of this Cassel.

 Loading ...