ENGLEWOOD, Col. – Christian Ponder interrupted the task of painting his house last week to make the short drive from his Phoenix house for a workout with the Arizona Cardinals.
The workout went well, in his estimations, but there was no job offer and he could see his hopes to rekindle his NFL career grow more dim the deeper it got into training camp.
“That crossed my mind,” said Ponder, 28, when asked if he thought he might not get another chance to play football.
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“My plan was to stay ready for this season anyway and see what happens. If nothing happened all year, it would be time to hang it up. I was going to give myself this season and see what happens.”
But on Monday, the phone rang. And it was not the Cardinals. The 49ers called after learning veteran quarterback Thad Lewis was out for the season with a torn ACL in his left knee.
Ponder was on a flight to the Bay Area just seven hours later. He arrived Monday night, took a physical Tuesday morning, signed a contract, then traveled with his new team to Denver and participated in Wednesday’s practice against the Broncos.
“It’s been non-stop,” Ponder said. “They gave me a playbook when we got on the plane ... They threw me in the fire, which is good. That’s the best way to learn. It’s been a fun 24 hours.”
San Francisco 49ers
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Ponder was the No. 12 overall pick of the Minnesota Vikings in the same 2011 draft class in which the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Blaine Gabbert at No. 10 and the 49ers traded up to get Colin Kaepernick at No. 36.
He started 16 games with the Vikings in 2012, including a solid showing in a 24-13 victory over the 49ers. Ponder completed 21 of 35 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns.
“I remember that game,” Ponder said. “That was one of the best games I ever played. It was fun to be at home. That was the year (the 49ers) went to the Super Bowl, right? It was fun. It was a good game.”
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But Ponder mostly struggled through the remainder of his time with the Vikings. He started 10 games in 2013 and ’14. He signed with the Raiders in the 2015 offseason but was cut before the regular season. Last year, he spent two weeks with the Denver Broncos but did not appear in a game.
Obviously, there are not many quarterbacks with NFL experience available at this stage of training camp, but his experience is what drew the 49ers to sign him this week.
“He can step into the National Football League in a game and function,” 49ers general manager Trent Baalke said. “Coach (Chip Kelly) looked into the possibility of bringing him on last year (with the Philadelphia Eagles) before he signed with Oakland. There was a connection there.”
Also, 49ers offensive coordinator Curtis Modkins has known Ponder since his high-school days. Modkins, then an assistant on Chan Gailey’s staff at Georgia Tech, nearly landed him before Florida State signed Ponder to a letter of intent. Modkins said Ponder broke his heart.
“He’s smart. He’s athletic,” Modkins said. “He’ll be able to do the things we ask him to do and I expect him to be able to catch up to speed pretty quickly.”
Ponder, who admittedly is not in top physical condition, saw some practice time on Wednesday against the Broncos. In team drills, he completed three of eight pass attempts with one interception.
Kaepernick was held out of practice on Wednesday and might not be available for Saturday’s exhibition game against Denver. Ponder declared himself available for game action after Gabbert and rookie Jeff Driskel.
“Yeah, I’d like to play,” Ponder said. “It won’t be a full playbook. Hopefully, we come up with a plan for what I can do in the game and go out and play. It would be fun to compete and get out there.”
After all, it beats painting a house – a job that remains unfinished.
“My wife is not happy about it,” he said.
Tune in tonight at 5 & 11 p.m. when I'll discuss the latest 49ers news out of Denver on SportsTalk Live, and also on SportsNet Central at 6 & 10:30 p.m. -- all on CSN Bay Area.