In my latest at The League, I looked at three quarterbacks from the 2011 NFL draft and how they will change their respective franchises. I looked previously at the top three quarterbacks drafted, but the next three all mark a major change (or part of a major change) for their teams. Due to space restrictions, I took out the part I had written about how widely the Vikings selection of QB Christian Ponder was mocked because he was a mid-second round player taken early in the first round. But the bigger picture is that the Vikings have a lot riding on his selection:
This marks only third time in franchise history that the Vikings have selected a quarterback in the first round. The last time was Daunte Culpepper in 1999, who they traded away before the 2006 season began. They’ve been riding a revolving door of quarterbacks even since. Ponder’s arrival potentially begins an era of stability, and he’s the first major roster decision made since they hired Leslie Frazier as their head coach.