The Vikings lost their second game of the season on Monday Night Football against the Chicago Bears 20-10.
Minnesota (5-2) has the fifth-best record in the NFL.
The Vikings return home during Week 9 to take on another divisional foe, the Detroit Lions (4-4).
Let's take a look where the experts rank the Vikings heading into Sunday's matchup.
*Are the Vikings worse than the Falcons -- and thus, deserving of a lower ranking here? Tough call. What is not debatable is that Minnesota is trending downward. Kyle Rudolph looked like a quarterback who still doesn't have a full grasp of the offense -- most notably, when the Vikings were still huddling in hurry-up mode -- but at least Minnesota made up for it with a garbage running game. Permission to be concerned, #SKOL fans. *
Vikings #6 — **NFL.com**
Not many anticipated that the Vikings would rise as high as they did after losing QB Stefon Diggs to a season-ending injury in late August. But with Sam Bradford's recent struggles, taking 11 sacks the past two games, a bigger drop-off could be in store if the problems aren't corrected.
Vikings #7 —**ESPN**
*The Vikings are the obvious drop, after we gave them the benefit of the doubt last week against the Eagles. The way Minnesota played against the Bears, the No. 30 team in last week's power rankings, suggests that there are legitimate issues — primarily the offensive line — that the Vikings need to correct. *
Vikings #4 — **SB Nation**
One bad line ain't enough, Jack.
The Vikings went and made it a double. We now need to start questioning if Mike Zimmer's team is tough enough in either trench to make the playoff run that once felt inevitable.
Injuries and bad pass protection created offensive issues the past two weeks. But this is the first time we've seen their talented defensive line get pushed around. That shouldn't happen with all that talent, nor should the Vikings get gashed in the run game.
Factor out Jordan Howard's big runs, though, and he still ran for four yards per carry. Who would've guessed?
Looking forward:* Minnesota must sort out its blocking issues. Otherwise, even the injury-riddled Lions front will break through on Sam Bradford.*
Vikings #7—* ***Bleacher Report**
*It's officially time to be concerned. Minnesota has overcome ton of adversity, but it (and Sam Bradford) may not survive dearth of blocking. *
Vikings #10 — ***USA TODAY***
I remember two weeks ago, when Vikings fans were screaming at me that not having their team No. 1 ahead of the Patriots was a travesty of justice. Ah, memories.
Vikings #7— **Yahoo Sports**
Their offensive line is killing this team. Can it be fixed to turn it around after two bad losses?* *
Vikings #7 —**CBS Sports**
The Vikings did not exactly respond to Coach Mike Zimmer's scathing postgame assessment of their loss the previous weekend in Philadelphia. That was an ugly performance Monday night at Chicago. The offensive line issues are not going away.
Vikings #9 — ***Washington Post***
But for the presence of plenty of mediocre teams below them, the Vikings would have fallen on this list like a rock tied to an anchor in a sack full of cement blocks.
Vikings #10 —**Pro Football Talk**
