Christian Ponder will reportedly join Chip Kelly and the gang with the San Francisco 49ers.
Former first-round pick Christian Ponder worked with two offensive coordinators during his time in Minnesota but neither Bill Musgrave nor Norv Turner was able to squeeze much production out of him. Will Chip Kelly have better luck? We apparently will get to find out.
According to ESPN’s Josina Anderson, Ponder will resurface with the San Francisco 49ers on a one-year deal.
San Francisco was forced to scramble after #3 quarterback Thad Lewis was lost for the season with a torn ACL.
Lewis of course only became important to the 49ers because Colin Kaepernick is unable to throw due to a “dead arm.”
After scouring the free agent list, Chip Kelly settled on Ponder. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
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On the surface it looks like Ponder has been picked up merely as a preseason emergency quarterback, but is there a chance he could use this opportunity as a springboard to a regular season role?
Blaine Gabbert is the #1 QB in San Francisco right now, and he ain’t no Joe Montana. So maybe Ponder has a shot.
Then again, this is Christian Ponder we’re talking about. He never showed any consistency in Minnesota and after being cut by the Vikings he has failed to catch on anywhere else.
The wild card in this equation is Chip Kelly and his up-tempo offense. Kelly’s system did do wonders for Nick Foles in Philadelphia. For one year.
Ponder seems a decent fit for Kelly given his mobility, but his lack of accuracy works against him.
Is there an offensive system that works well without an accurate quarterback?
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The odds would seem to be stacked against Ponder, with or without Chip Kelly. Ponder simply is not a good quarterback and at this point it’s hard to imagine him improving very much.
At best, Ponder might be a decent #2 until Kaepernick is able to come back. At worst, he gets to play in a couple preseason games and make some money and then go home to his adorable family.