EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Coach Leslie Frazier defended Christian Ponder again on Wednesday, saying the quarterback's struggles weren't the only reason the Minnesota Vikings lost to the Detroit Lions on Sunday. Frazier added that he's not thinking about making a change at the position.
"Christian, he made some mistakes, but he's not the only reason we didn't have success on Sunday," Frazier said. "Our team did not play well, and that affects the quarterback as well. It wasn't just Christian, it just so happens that he plays the position that's under the most scrutiny."
Ponder went 18-for-28 for 236 yards but threw three interceptions in the Vikings' 34-24 loss to the Lions. He will have to rebound this weekend if the Vikings want to win in Chicago for the first time since 2007.
But the mistakes he made against the Lions can be fixed, Ponder said.
"Monday morning, as you head into the film room you get that bad feeling, and as you watch the game you're like, 'Oh man, that's something that was dumb that could have easily just not happened," Ponder said. "As you watch it, it's a bad taste in your mouth. But at the same time it gives you confidence because, hey, these are easily correctable."
And wide receiver Greg Jennings, who caught three passes for 33 yards in his first game with the Vikings, echoed Frazier's theme that the blame shouldn't be solely on Ponder.
"He can't win the game for us. He can't just lose the game for us. Trust me," Jennings said. "That's the tough road that he has: If we play well, Christian looks great. If we don't play well, Christian still will not look great. I've spoken to him about that. He doesn't bear the whole load, just like Adrian [Peterson] doesn't bear the whole load. We're a team of 53. We bear the load -- not one man, not one person, not one individual. It's not fair for one person to get all the stones thrown at him when there were mistakes made by 11 guys that were out there on the field."
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