WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2011
Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier
Good morning. I’m sure by now most of you are familiar with the fact that we have made a quarterback change. Christian Ponder
is going to be our starting quarterback against Green Bay and we expect for him to start for us the remainder of the season. I had a chance to talk with both Christian and Donovan (McNabb) on Tuesday and just went through some of my thinking and why myself and the coaching staff came to this conclusion and Donovan was terrific. He’s a class individual as all of you would know if you’ve had a chance to speak with him. He’s a true pro in every sense of the word. He’s a competitor. He wanted to be able to finish things but he understood why we were doing what we’re doing and Christian is as excited as you can imagine. He’s extremely excited about this opportunity. You’ll get a chance to talk with him a little bit later but he’s looking forward to his first start in the National Football League. When I talked with our team, I expressed to them some of the things that went into this decision. The fact that we’re 1-5, I think there’s a lot of football left to be played. It does not mean that I am giving up on the 2011 season or our coaching staff. We’re not giving up on the 2011 season. The decision was made purely based on what will give us the best chance to win on Sunday and that’s why the decision was made. I didn’t feel or sense that staying status quo was going to get us a win on Sunday and based on that along with some other things that I looked at, just decided that this is the direction we need to go at this point in our season and I want to reiterate for me, it’s all about what we have to do to win a game and our next game is against Green Bay, the defending world champions. They are playing extremely well, undefeated and in my mind this gives us the best chance to win period and that’s the approach that we’re taking. That’s exactly what I told our team and we’re moving forward and looking forward to this ball game in a big way.
Q: Why this week? Has this decision been building up over the past few weeks?
A: I’ve been thinking about a lot of things as we’re going through our season with the way we started and the way our games have been going and one of the things I expressed to Donovan and our team was that this move is not about just the quarterback position. Our entire team has to play better for us to win on Sunday and I’m hoping that we will. We’re going to practice to play better but based on where we are and what’s left in the season, that’s what it was based on. There’s a lot of football to be played and I wanted to do whatever I thought was necessary to help us get a win on Sunday and in my mind and our coaches’ minds this is what needed to happen in order for us to have our best chance to win on Sunday.
Q: Is this move permanent?
A: He’s our starting quarterback. There is no wavering. I told our team we’re counting on him to lead us over the remainder of the season barring injuries or anything.
Q: What role does Donovan play now?
A: He’ll be our backup quarterback. We’ll still find ways to get Joe (Webb) on the field but Donovan will be in the backup role.
Q: Is he comfortable in the backup role as opposed to moving on?
A: What he expressed to me, and I know you guys will get a chance to talk with him as well, he wants to do everything he can to help Christian be a successful quarterback. As a matter of fact he reflected back when he took over for Doug Pederson, who was the starting quarterback his rookie year and how Doug continued to assist him and help him during that rookie season. He wanted to be able to do the same thing for Christian. Just a true testament to who his is as a person but he wanted to be here to help Christian as much as he can.
Q: Do you expect Donovan to be on the roster the rest of the year?
A: I do.
Q: What does Christian do that you’ve seen that will give you the better chance to win?
A: When you watch, you don’t get to see him in practice the way we do, he’s done a lot of good things in practice in his preparation and the way he prepares and the way he practices and the command he has in the huddle are some things I would observe and we all wanted to see as time went on how he would handle certain things. He’s done a good job in practice and when he got a chance to play in the game on Sunday, some of the things he did let me know that the game is not too big for him. It’s not too fast for him and he did some good things in a short period of time. As you noticed, they did not take their number one defense off of the field. They continued to bring pressure, continued to run their system and he handled it very, very well and that was an indication for me that if we’re going to do something, this is the time.
Q: From Week One up to this point, have you seen notable improvement from Christian?
A: Yeah, he’s continued to get better all along and we thought that he would and even in the preseason, you could see him making steps and probably the last two or three weeks I have really seen some incremental jumps, some major jumps in his performance, composure, poise, and command, so I saw it coming. To see what he did in his limited time in a live game on Sunday night and knowing where our football team is and where I think we can go, just felt like this was the time to do it.
Q: Was this a difficult decision to make after bringing in Donovan originally as your starter?
A: I can’t say that on July 31 I thought we’d be at 1-5, there’s no way I could have predicted that. I thought we would be further along than we are. I have a ton of respect for Donovan as a person and a player as well but the decision was made based on what’s going to be best for our team and what gives us the best chance to win and taking my personal feelings out of it which is what I have to do in this role that I’m in. That’s the way the decision was made and that’s what I explained to our team. Every decision I make is purely based on what I think gives us the best chance to win.
Q: What do you think (Packers Defensive Coordinator) Dom Capers is going to throw at Christian?
A: It really doesn’t matter. We’re going to prepare Christian for the Green Bay Packers defense and get him ready to play to the best of his abilities. They’ve got an outstanding defense, one of the top defenses in the league. He’s going to see a lot of different looks, lot of different pressures and we’re going to try to prepare him. We think he will be prepared and we think he’ll play well.
Q: Over the past week, how much did Rick Spielman or ownership weigh in on this decision?
A: They really haven’t pressed me on that position. Our ownership, along with Rick, they’ve been extremely supportive throughout this season, throughout this offseason and it was no different with our tough start. They’ve been extremely supportive. I’m actually the one who called them on Monday and told them what I was thinking and we talked some more later that day and they were supportive. They understood why I wanted to do what I wanted to do and they’ve been great. Rick was the same way when I expressed to him the direction we wanted to go. They’ve been very, very supportive.
Q: When you looked back at the Chicago game, did you notice the speed of the offense pick up when Christian entered the game?
A: There were a lot of factors. It was not just the Chicago game. Where we are as a team had a lot to do with it as well. There are a lot of factors involved in making this decision, not just one game or one quarter. I took a lot of things into account. Our entire season was a part of this decision and as I’ve mentioned and I’ll say it again, the quarterback position is not the only reason we’re 1-5. We have some things that we need to get fixed to go out and win against Green Bay who is an outstanding team.
Q: Will you make any other starter changes this week?
A: Not starting, but we’ll have some rotational things we may do.
Q: If Antoine Winfield comes back healthy this week, would Chris Cook be the other starter at cornerback?
A: We’re going to see how Antoine does, if he’s able to practice today and then we’ll make a determination maybe later in the week, what we think he can do from a rep standpoint and then we’ll make that decision.
Q: Christian has the ability to make plays with his athleticism. What is the challenge in using that skill without trying to overuse it?
A: Sometimes with young quarterbacks that’s one of the things that you kind of expect, you hope as they develop and grow in the offense and understand the game a little bit, there will be a little bit more in the pocket, but you also want him to utilize that asset he does have, his escapability. It’s just a matter of picking his spots and understanding defenses and that will come over time but you don’t want to handcuff him and say ‘We want you just to stay in the pocket.’
Q: If you had to do it over would you have traded for Donovan McNabb?
A: No, I don’t think I would do anything differently under the circumstances. This is a situation I hope to look back at and see where the benefits were. I don’t think this chapter or this book ends at this juncture but no, knowing what I know now, the decision would have still been the same.
Q: You mentioned last week you want Donovan to open it up more. Is that something Christian can give you, more of a downfield passing game?
A: Christian had some attributes that we really like when we drafted him and when we went down to visit with him and watched him on tape. He’ll get a chance now to develop over these next few weeks but also hopefully lead us to some wins and part of that will be throwing the ball downfield, throwing the ball on outs, slants, whatever we ask him to do but it’s more about what Christian is capable of doing and not necessarily what Donovan didn’t do. Christian has a chance to do a good job for us and lead us and that’s what we’re counting on.
Q: What’s the offensive line going to look like with the injuries you have right now?
A: We’re a little banged up. With Phil Loadholt, the situation being questionable, we’ll have to see how he progresses over the week. Charlie Johnson has been a little banged up and so is Hutchinson a little bit. With Sullivan’s concussion he’ll still probably be day to day right up until Friday on what his availability will be. So we’ll have to juggle some parts and get guys ready to play. They understand it’s next man up. Guys that get in, they have to play and play well. What they’re doing front wise on defense in Green Bay creates some issues for your offense and your offensive line in particular. So we have to be on it when it comes to studying and getting a feel for their defensive front.
Q: How, specifically, are Hutchinson and Charlie Johnson banged up?
A: Hutch’s knee was a little sore from the game, he had a little bit of swelling, but he should be fine. We just have to monitor that. Charlie has just been dealing with a tricep and he should be fine, he’s been playing with it.
Q: Did you consider waiting a week and starting Ponder against Carolina instead of Green Bay?
A: I did think about that a little bit. But just looking at our team and this ball game, a ball game we need to win if we want to make the games in December meaningful, I couldn’t look past this football game. We’re playing at home; we need to win at home, no matter who the opponent is. Based on what gave us the best chance to win, that’s what this decision came down to.
Q: There are some long term benefits to getting Ponder experience and development now, can you speak to those?
A: Yeah, there’s no question. The fact that he’ll get a chance to start playing in week 7 of our season should help him in the future. But that was not part of my thinking. I would have felt just as good if we were 5-1 right now and he had his first start in 2012 or 2013, as long as we were successful as a team, but that’s not the case so he’ll get some experience and hopefully along the way he’ll lead us to some wins in these games we have remaining.
Q: What was the reaction from the other players when you told them?
A: I think they were on board, that’s the impression that I get and that’s the feeling I got when I talked with them about it. You guys will get the chance to talk to them in a little bit, but I get the impression that they understand. Some may not agree, I don’t know, but I got the impression that the majority understand the direction we want to go and why we’re doing it.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2011
Vikings Quarterback Christian Ponder
What’s up guys? I better get used to seeing you every week. First off I just want to say that I am very grateful for this opportunity and I want to thank Coach Frazier for granting this opportunity for me. What an exciting week to do it, against the defending world champs. It’s going to be fun, and a great challenge. I am excited about it. I have such a great supporting cast around me on the offensive side of the ball and they are going to do everything they can to make it easy on me.
Q: How do you make the transition from being a rookie backup to being a leader on this team?
A: I don’t think it’s hard to do. At the quarterback position; at that leadership position, it comes natural. I don’t think anything of it; I’m going to go out there and be the same person I have been for the past 5 years in college and being here now. I don’t think it’s going to be a tough transition.
Q: Are you more ready for this now that you would have been 6 or 7 weeks ago?
A: Yeah, I definitely think so. I’m a lot more comfortable and confident in what I’m doing. Especially watching Donovan and seeing some of the things that he has done and helping me with things that he is doing on the field and telling me what he has done and what he has seen has helped me out a lot. I feel like I have improved since that first day of training camp a lot.
Q: When did you and Frazier meet on this subject and when was it determined?
A: We talked about it yesterday, he called me in his office around lunchtime and sat me down and he had already talked to Donovan first and he just told me that we were looking to make a change and put me in there and see what happens.
Q: Tell me about this past Sunday’s experience and what you were able to do?
A: I think the biggest thing for me was going out and making a couple throws and plays and getting a little confidence in myself and I think it was that first step, that first experience. I am going to try and build on it this week.
Q: In your last couple preseason games and Sunday you have shown a willingness to run, how are you going to balance that opportunity to run and staying in the pocket?
A: I don’t know, I’m not really going to think about it, I’m just going to let instincts take over, and when I feel like I have to run I’m going to take off and if not I’m going to make myself stay in the pocket and make throws. At this point now it is instinctive.
Q: Have you and Donovan talked since this decision has been made?
A: We have, and the first thing he said to me this morning was if I ever need anything just come and talk to him. He has been very supportive of me and I am extremely grateful to be in this position and have a 13-year vet to help me out.
Q: Did he tell you congratulations?
A: He did yeah, we have a great relationship on and off the field, and he wished me luck and he is going to be there each step of the way this year and I am very grateful to have him.
Q: Did you talk to your receivers yesterday just to go over things?
A: No.
Q: In what ways will you rely on Donovan going forward?
A: The same way I have done all year. Especially in the preseason when I was playing, he was on the sideline, helping me out, telling me what he saw and what he thinks I need to do. And in the film room; all year we have sat in there together and he has talked about things that he has seen and what the looks for on film. Obviously he has those 13 years of experience so he knows a little more than I do.
Q: When you look back at your two series on tape from Sunday what do you see?
A: I see that I made some plays and missed some plays. I have to make a couple more throws, but I think it just gives me the confidence that I can do it.
Q: What’s your biggest concern this week?
A: I think, obviously, it is going to be a big challenge, which I am excited for. There will be some growing pains and some steps that you have to go through, but I’m looking to have success, I’m not really thinking about what I’m concerned about.
Q: After watching the offense from the sidelines what can you provide that you haven’t had as a team?
A: I think collectively as a whole the offense needs to play better, I’m going to play my game and hopefully that makes us better at what we are able to do, but as a whole offense and as a whole team we need to do a lot of things to improve on what we did in the first 6 games.
Q: Is it good that the Bears blitzed as much as they did, just to get that out of the way?
A: I actually threw a hot route which was good, but to see that and to react to it is good. We are going to get a lot more reps this practice with the blitz and as you know Green Bay will probably bring a lot of pressure, but I am definitely comfortable and confident.
Q: Are you on the same page with the starting receivers after not really running with the first team?
A: Yeah, I think a couple of those guys; I have gotten some reps with in the preseason. I am pretty comfortable and the good thing is they are all really good players so they will make it easy on me.
Q: As a quarterback, do you go into this game and say I have to outplay Aaron Rodgers?
A: No, I have never gone about it that way. I have always focused on myself and my game and I put the pressure on myself to play on a high level and not really compare myself to other guys.
Q: The Packers are pretty well known for running a lot of different defensive fronts, is that something you are prepared for?
A: It’s going to be a challenge, but it’s not too different from things we have seen before. A lot of their 3-4 defense we are going to try to treat as 4 down lineman and make that easier on us in the blocking scheme. The biggest thing for me is to try and watch film and prepare for it, get as comfortable as possible.
Q: Have you had a chance to talk to the other guys in the locker room? What was their reaction?
A: Guys have been very supportive and they have been that way since I stepped foot in this facility, but everyone is comfortable with it and guys are showing support which I am very appreciative of.
Q: Were you getting impatient at all?
A: No, I wasn’t at all. I knew at some point, whether it was this year, next year or two years down the road that it was going to be my time, and knowing that fact and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I was just trying to do my part being on the scout team and preparing the defense for what they were going to see. I was never impatient with it.
Q: Do you know that you are only the 3rd quarterback this franchise has ever taken in the first round? Are you prepared for the expectations for the first time you run out there on Sunday?
A: I don’t think anyone’s expectations have been higher than what I put on myself. I have high expectations for myself and I prepare myself for success. When things don’t go my way I make sure that they do. I am a perfectionist and I am going to do everything I can and reach my expectations.
Q: When the team started to struggle did you maybe sense a window of opportunity?
A: No, starting from day one I was always trying to do my best. I never knew what coaches were thinking, and it wasn’t really Donovan’s fault, the whole offense and team in general, everyone needed to improve, so I don’t think you can pinpoint it on one guy, so I never really thought of it that way.
Q: What is the most complicated part of the offense for you to grasp?
A: The whole thing in general is more complicated than what we did in college; it’s very similar, but just the different checks and reads and getting comfortable with the terminology. I think in general it’s just more complex than college.
Q: Did you ever get the feeling on Sunday that this would be your shot to step in?
A: No, you take that mindset that you always expect to go in, but I didn’t expect to go in. I was hoping that we would be winning, but I was granted that opportunity and I went out and tried my best and I was put in this situation today.
Q: Do you feel as though your reads have sped up?
A: Yeah, I think the whole game is slowed down, which is big. It comes from being here, spending time here and competing against the scout team defense has helped. Trying to figure out certain throws, what I can fit in, and what I can’t, that has really helped a lot.
Q: Do you have a favorite receiver yet?
A: No I don’t, I haven’t really had the time to build that yet. I think Kyle Rudolph, he is a guy that I have had chemistry with before I stepped into this building and in the preseason together, and he has shown a lot throughout these games. I’m sure at some point I will develop some sort of favorite, I don’t even know if I will tell you that, I don’t know.
Q: How many tickets do you have to give on Sunday?
A: Not a lot, it’s been kind of a last minute deal. I have a couple friends coming up and my dad is coming up, but I have a few fans out there.
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters featured article: A ‘Malign Intellectual Subculture’ – George Monbiot Smears Chomsky, Herman, Peterson, Pilger And Media Lens.
