The weather forecast calls for a chance of rain in Minnesota on Saturday, but it might pale in comparison to the boos raining down on Christian Ponder at TCF Bank Stadium.
Ponder, now a backup with the Oakland Raiders, will return to Minnesota for a preseason game that he anticipates will be filled with boos echoing throughout the stadium.
“Oh, I’m going to get booed,” Ponder told Bay Area News Group. “I’m trying to figure out, we were talking about it in the quarterback room, what I should do when I get out on the field? Should I take a bow, or what? What’s going to happen? I’m expecting some boos, but it’s all fun though.”
Ponder was the Vikings’ first-round pick in 2011 and was a disappointment. The Star Tribune notes that he had more turnovers than touchdowns in four years with the Vikings, and he averaged a mediocre 6.4 yards per pass attempt.
Have fans moved on from Ponder now that Teddy Bridgewater appears to be the real deal franchise quarterback Minnesota has been aching for? Yes, according to Viking Update, which adds that Ponder helped lead the Vikings to its only playoff appearance (2012) since Brett Favre guided the 2009 Vikings within minutes of a Super Bowl appearance.
FOX 9’s Dawn Mitchell previewed the matchup, and she got defensive end Everson Griffen to smile when thinking about Ponder’s return. “It’s going to be good to see him,” Griffen said.
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