Adrian Peterson was the only bright light for the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. The running back put up 93 yards in the win while recording two touchdowns. While that is great news for Vikings fans, the lack of receiving yards is cause for concern. With an upgraded group of receivers, 2013 was supposed to be the year the Christian Ponder feasted through the air. Except that he did not and the Vikings lost. However, Peterson is telling fans to not place the blame solely on the quarterback.
After the loss, there was plenty of frustration from the Vikings' locker room. The team was riddled by mistakes on both sides of the ball and Ponder's performance might have been the worst of it all. Even if it was not, he will get the most scrutiny.
Ponder went 18 of 28 for 236 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He did very little to cement his spot as the future of the Vikings, something fans were hoping he would emerge as after training camp. The three interceptions was a career high for Ponder as he played his way to a 63.1 passer rating. Not to mention the fumble he was charged with.
The quarterback of course was critical of himself after the game. He threw a crucial interception late in the first half as he was trying to avoid a sack. It set up a Detroit touchdown. Ponder simply said that he and the team had to play better and eliminate the turnovers. Peterson and head coach Leslie Frazier came to his defense.
"I think we all have to play better," Peterson said, via the Star Tribune. "I think it's on us, up front, to do a better job. That's a very good defensive front and we have to do more ourselves, not just Christian."
Frazier echoed the words of Peterson. The coach told reporters that it was a team loss, not just a poor performance by Ponder. While that is certainly true, it is Ponder that will receiver all of the criticism. With his future already uncertain, games like this do not help his status.
"It wasn't all Christian," Frazier said. "We didn't play well as a team. There were some things he'd like to do better. But a lot of other guys, too. When they look at this tape tomorrow, we're going to see that it wasn't just Christian. We've got to do better all the way across the board."
