Many Buffalo Bills fans were disappointed in the senior season put forth by Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder. Though he set career highs in total touchdowns (24), Ponder struggled with injuries and played poorly in big games, and moved convincingly out of first round consideration.
Wes Bunting, who runs the scouting department at the National Football Post, brought a dose of reality back to the conversations surrounding Ponder in a delightful little piece this morning. His evaluation of Ponder's injury-plagued senior season: there's not an awful lot to take away from it. Writes Bunting:
From an evaluation standpoint, Ponder’s senior year can be looked at in only a couple of ways…
1. He’s a tough kid who tried to play through the pain and do what was best for the team despite not having his best stuff.
2. He may have developed some medical issues that now need to be checked out and determining if he can hold up throughout the course of an NFL season is key in determining his draft stock.
Ponder called himself completely healthy at the 2011 Senior Bowl, where he was coached by Chan Gailey and the Bills and won the game's MVP award.