Frazier: Quarterback Decision Coming By Wednesday

In the most anticipated decision since the finale of. . .ummmmm, one of those reality shows that nobody actually watches. . .the Minnesota Vikings have announced that they will decide who will start at quarterback for this Monday's gigantic clash against the New York Giants by this Wednesday.

The Vikings are, allegedly, weighing three options at quarterback for this Monday night, though realistically they're only weighing two, and it might not even be that many.

In one corner of this Triangle of Mediocrity. . .and I use that term because I'm feeling unusually generous today. . .we have the guy that began the season as Minnesota's starting quarterback in Christian Ponder. In another corner, we have the guy that took over for Ponder when he was injured, Matt Cassel, who was last seen in a heap on the turf at the Metrodome. And in the final corner, we have the newly-acquired Josh Freeman, who has been on the team for a week and is probably already wondering exactly what the heck he's gotten himself into.

Let's make this clear now. . .I sincerely doubt that Ponder gets the start on Monday. The team made it abundantly clear on Sunday during their loss to the Carolina Panthers that they're done with Ponder, leaving Cassel in the game to get whooped rather than giving Ponder a shot against what was about a half-full house.

Cassel looked awful on Sunday, leading an offense that generated exactly three points during the portion of the game where the Panthers still cared. He was under siege all day long, and showed why he was slated to be the backup this season.

That leaves us with Freeman, who this week could. . .and probably should. . .start an 11-game audition for the rest of the NFL to show that his rough start to the season was due to being trapped in Greg Schiano's House of MRSA and Innuendo. There's a concern that he doesn't know the playbook yet, but considering that Bill Musgrave's offense is slightly less diverse than the menu at your local Five Guys, I'm not sure how big a concern that actually is. Freeman's next start will be his 60th as an NFL quarterback, and he's got to be to the point of his career where he's seen quite a bit from opposing defenses. Besides, what's going to happen. . .this offense going to get worse?

Frankly, I think Freeman gets the start because, at this point, he's the only option that makes sense. There's a chance that the team could go with Cassel again, and basically no chance that they go with Ponder.

Tune in Wednesday for the thrilling conclusion of It Doesn't Matter: We're Screwed No Matter What Because None Of These Guys Can Play Corner.