From the silence of no comments from left tackle Christian Darrisaw to the uncertainty of his playing status in the final three games of the regular season, Minnesota Vikings fans knew something was off with the situation.
The Vikings fan base finally got the resolution they'd been waiting for from Minnesota head coach Kevin O'Connell. During his press conference, O'Connell announced that Darrisaw has been shut down for the rest of the season as he will be placed on IR.
Head Coach Kevin O’Connell announces the #Vikings will place T Christian Darrisaw on IR.
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) December 19, 2025
Coming back from his ACL injury in 2024, Darrisaw just hasn't been the same player this season, as he has left multiple games early due to knee issues and has missed four games. He last played against the Washington Commanders earlier in the month.
The Minnesota Vikings' offensive line takes a hit with Christian Darrisaw gone for the season
Darrisaw's stats show he has regressed significantly this season from the high-level player we have seen over the last few seasons. This season, he has been penalized eight times, allowed 18 pressures, four quarterback hits, and two sacks on the season. Pro Football Focus has him graded out as the 42nd-best offensive tackle out of 82 in the NFL with an overall grade of 65.9.
It seemed destined that this would be the decision the Vikings would make, as Darrisaw had told reporters he would not talk to them. That seemed to be the first indication that something was going on behind the scenes.
Ultimately, this was the right decision for the Vikings to make as they have to protect Darrisaw, who has not been healthy all season. He did not 100% recover from the ACL injury, and it hindered him from being the tackle Minnesota needed him to be.
This will at least allow him to focus on his rehab and start to feel better, with the hopes that he can get back to the player the Vikings know he can be. In the second most important position in football, at left tackle, they need Darrisaw to improve and get healthy, or they will have to look into alternative options, but that's too early to get to that point.