Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder is dealing with a rib injury and his status for Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns is uncertain, according to the Pioneer Press. Ponder will practice with the team on Wednesday, but it's unclear if he will do so in a limited fashion.
Christian Ponder has rib injury, fantasy status uncertain for Week 4
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder has a rib injury and is uncertain for Week 4. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Ponder sustained the injury in a Week 3 loss to the Cleveland Browns, in which Ponder struggled. He completed 25 of 42 passes for 228 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. He was brought down for a sack six times in the game.
It’s a bad time to be getting injured for Ponder, given the controversy at the quarterback position. The Vikings have done nothing to facilitate this controversy, but the fans have been calling for Ponder to be benched due to his poor play this season and Minnesota’s 0-3 record.
Ponder is in his third year as starter and it's not been a good one. He's completed 59 of 100 pass attempts for 691 yards with two touchdowns and five interceptions. He's completed 59.0 percent of his passes. Wednesday saw a quarterback change in Tampa Bay where the Buccaneers elected to bench five-year starter Josh Freeman for his poor play, which isn't that much worse than Ponder's at this point.
Fantasy Impact: Ponder hasn't been a very effective fantasy option thus far this season. If you happen to be starting him, you're probably not in a good place. That said, if your QB position is in shambles, it couldn't hurt to pick up Matt Cassel on the off chance Ponder doesn't play. Perhaps Cassel can make something happen and earn the starting job going forward. Either way, expect Adrian Peterson to get more than his fair share of carries.
• Week 4 fantasy football waiver wire: QB | RB | WR | TE | D/ST
