After a 5-0 start that had the league buzzing, the Minnesota Vikings have faltered the last two weeks with losses against the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams.

The biggest factor in projecting the future of the Vikings is the loss of left tackle Christian Darrisaw, as he tore his ACL and MCL last Thursday night. They have multiple different options to replace Darrisaw and how they choose to do so will impact the future of the franchise.

The latest rendition of the NFL power rankings have the Vikings firmly outside the top five but nobody views them outside the top 10.

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ESPN's NFL Nation

Last week: 6
This week: 9

Best offseason addition: LB Andrew Van Ginkel

The Vikings' front office produced a stellar free agent class, and the team would not be 5-2 without contributions from running back Aaron Jones, corner Stephon Gilmore and linebackers Jonathan Greenard and Blake Cashman, among others. But none has been as impactful as Van Ginkel, who not only is tied for the team lead with five sacks but has also used a unique understanding of the short-range passing game to return two interceptions for touchdowns. He is a legitimate candidate for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. — Kevin Seifert

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Yahoo! Sports' Frank Schwab

Last week: 4
This week: 10

Have teams figured out Brian Flores’ defense? The Rams and Lions scored a combined 61 points and had nearly 800 yards in Minnesota’s past two games. The Vikings should be fine, but it’s time to make adjustments.

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CBS Sports' Pete Prisco

Last week: 4
This week: 5

That 5-0 start seems like a long time ago. The defense has fallen apart the past two weeks. Losing tackle Christian Darrisaw is a damning blow.

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NFL.com's Eric Edholm

Last week: 4
This week: 7

Let's get this out of the way: The missed facemask penalty was a bad look, but saying it cost the Vikings the game is a major stretch. They'd have needed to go on an 80-yard TD drive and convert a two-point conversion just to force overtime. The seeds of the loss to the Rams came earlier, with a defense that previously looked like one of the NFL's best struggling for a second time in a five-day span. The Lions and Rams were tough assignments, no doubt, but the Vikings must be better defensively if they hope to have this season end in the postseason. Since 1990, teams starting 5-0 are 56-for-62 when it comes to making the playoffs, but the chances drop more than 15 percent for 5-2 teams (155-for-207, 74.9%). Was the lack of a pass rush a one-week blip? The result of a short turnaround? The Vikings take an extended tour through the AFC South before the meat of the schedule hits, with four of the final seven games against NFC North foes. Even with the Bears' last-second loss on Sunday, this division remains a monster, and the Vikings can't afford to slip too far.

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USA Today's Nate Davis

Last week: 4
This week: 5

Flexed into their third exclusive broadcast window in the past four games, the listing Vikes must again prove they're ready for prime time without injured Christian Darrisaw, one of the league's best left tackles.

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The Sporting News' Vinnie Iyer

Last week: 3
This week: 9

The Vikings have come back to earth against some tougher offenses with their defense not being in the same position to force turnovers. Now, they need to worry about their offense with left tackle Christian Darrisaw (knee) out for the season.

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Bleacher Report's NFL Staff

Last week: 2
This week: 3

"The injury to Darrisaw isn't Minnesota's only problem coming out of the loss against the Rams, although it may be the most pressing. Sam Darnold has locked onto Justin Jefferson to the point that it may be hurting the Vikings. As great as Jefferson is, Minnesota struggled offensively with almost half of Darnold's attempts and passing yards going his way.

"The biggest issue, however, remains the Vikings' leaky pass defense. Matthew Stafford had more touchdown passes Thursday (four) than he had all season preceding that game. The Vikings have the worst pass defense in the NFC.

"It's going to be awfully hard to catch Detroit when you have no real chance of stopping them." — Gary Davenport

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Sports Illustrated's Conor Orr

Last week: 5
This week: 6

Christian Darrisaw’s injury is a worst-case scenario kind of deal for the Vikings. Sam Darnold has one of the best yards per attempt ratings in the NFL against the blitz and, generally, is one of the least impacted quarterbacks in the NFL when faced with a blitz and one of the 10 highest graded quarterbacks against the blitz this season, according to Pro Football Focus. While some quarterbacks enjoy a cleaner pocket percentage, losing a franchise tackle is going to create some chaos. 

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The Ringer's Diante Lee

Last week: 7
This week: 9

The missed face mask call on Sam Darnold late in Minnesota’s Thursday loss to the Rams was inexcusable. Now that we all agree, let’s look at the bigger picture of this Vikings season.

Minnesota rode its lights-out defense for the first month and a half of the season, but it’s been revealed over the past two games that defensive coordinator Brian Flores can only do so much to paper over this roster’s weaknesses, particularly at quarterback. The Vikings needed Darnold and the offense to do the heavy lifting against the Rams on Thursday, and that’s when we got a clear look at the difference between a quarterback who merely keeps a ship upright and one who lifts the tide for those around him. Darnold has been the former—a perfectly fine quarterback—but we have now seen in back-to-back losses that the Vikings need more from him in high-leverage situations.

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Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio

Last week: 4
This week: 10

It’s feeling like 2016 all over again.

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The Athletic's Josh Kendall

Last week: 3
This week: 8

Something Scary: Dallas Turner’s start

The No. 17 pick in this year’s draft has one sack and three quarterback pressures through seven games. That’s not great but wouldn’t be cause for alarm unless you dug deeper into the numbers. Turner, a 247-pound outside linebacker, has played only eight snaps in the last two games. In fact, his snap count has gone down each week, starting at 35 in Week 1 and going all the way down to three on Thursday night against the Rams. Turner’s only statistical contribution in his last four games is one tackle assist.