On the topic of Ponder's decision making and accuracy I always go back to his rookie season, week 15 against the Lions in particular. Up until that game (in which he got destroyed) Ponder had played in 6 games after no camp or time practicing with the starters because of the worm killing McRibb experiment/debacle.
His stats up to that point (6games) were:
112/199 1388yds 8.1 average per pass
9 tds 8 ints
sacked 23times and ran 18times for 154yds
Pretty decent considering the circumstances, being thrown into the fire. They weren't winning games. The O-line was playing pitifully...but he did have AD, Harvin, Jenkins and Shank...right? He did have the 29/47 381 3td 2int performance against Denver too.
Then came the Lions game: 11/23 115 5.5 2td 3int 3 sacks. Vanden Bosch absolutely crushed him toward the end of the 1st half, out of the pocket and blindsided. He really hurt Ponder's hip. Webb finished the game. Ponder was not even close to being effective after that game and Webb played just as much if not more down the stretch.
The final 4 games Ponder was 26/54 216 3.9 2td 4int 7 sacks.
I just threw the numbers out there to show the drastic decline after the Lion game. That's when I noticed a huge difference in his demeanor on the field and in his confidence in general. At first he came in full of pep, running around and making plays the best he could, given his experience...then he looked like a deer in the headlights. I noticed the same thing with TJack, McNabb(who often looked like he was just trying to find a soft place fall on the turf) and even the 2010/11 version of Favre( who I think was absolutely nuts to come back and play on bad ankles behind that horrid O-line).
There's a reason coaches and GMs are hesitant to throw young QBs out into the fray when their O-line defines instability, and their best WR from a route running perspective is about 3 seasons removed from his prime. (which wasn't all that great to begin with)
This teams down field passing game has been an absolute mess since TJack, and I, and others, would argue that it had to do just as much with the O-line and receiving corp as it did with any QB. The exception of course was Favre 2009, which, IMO, had more to do with Favre knowing more about running an offense, reading a defense and blitzes, better than the whole coaching staff combined, as well as having a healthy Rice..... despite that he still got physically murdered in the NFCCG.
My point is eventually, other than AD, what the hell has Ponder had to be confident in? That he is not quite as good as Favre's best season ever? What reason has he had to trust his WRs? His best WR (Harvin) could not be consistently relied on to be where he was supposed to be on routes and relied on his athleticism to make up for it...then he had the nerve to openly diss the QB for his performance? Not trustworthy IMO.
Last season was a big step in the right direction bringing in Kahlil and Felton...the development of Rudolph. But the WR situation was the worst I've ever seen for this franchise...just awful. Jenkins....that was it. He was only guy that actually could be considered a legit pro and he couldn't stay healthy long enough to have any real impact. Luck has Wayne, Newton has Smith...even Dalton has a guy in Green. I'm sure they all would trade any of those guys for Aromashodu, but Cutler has him now.
Bringing in Cassel was a move that was way over due. Cutting Sage in favor of JWebb was stooopid. Lesson learned. They drafted Ponder knowing he had the tools physically and that he is smart. They knew he would need time to develop. Their defensive backfield was nearly as bad as the WR situation. It's taken a couple of off seasons to make some much needed changes. But with the additions of Jennings and Harrison/Rhodes, they may have hit huge homeruns. If Patterson, Wright and even Simpson can learn the game the way Jennings plays it...including positive attitude, what a boon it will be.
So, it appears that Ponder has a lot more to trust going forward. It doesn't make any sense to me to suggest that Cassel is here to anything but help him get better and back him up. So, I will reserve my opinions on his confidence/decision making and accuracy until things unfold some more. It's been a bad situation...but it could have the benefit of temperance once it stabilizes.
Imagine where they'd be without AD and a guy who doesn't miss FGs from 50+yds. No more coffee for me......
