Broncos Cut Christian Ponder

After carrying four quarterbacks on their 53-man roster for the last two weeks, the Broncos have reduced that number to three, announcing today in a press release that they’ve waived veteran signal-caller Christian Ponder. The move leaves the team with an opening on its 53-man roster, which remains unfilled for now.

Ponder, 27, started 36 games during his four years with the Vikings, though he was essentially the team’s No. 3 signal-caller in 2014, behind Teddy Bridgewater and Matt Cassel on the depth chart. With a career 59.8% completion rate and 75.9 passer rating, Ponder didn’t find a very active market when he hit free agency this offseason — he ultimately signed with the Raiders, but was released by Oakland prior to the regular season.

When Peyton Manning went down with a foot injury, the Broncos signed Ponder to add some veteran depth at the quarterback position, even though Brock Osweiler and rookie Trevor Siemian were ahead of him on the depth chart. With Manning’s health improving and Osweiler looking very capable in the starting role, having a veteran like Ponder around as an insurance policy was no longer crucial.

Ponder will become a free agent once again if and when he clears waivers. As for the Broncos, they’ll use the open roster spot to add secondary depth, tweets Mike Klis of 9NEWS.

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