Vikings left tackle Christian Darrisaw needs season-ending knee surgery

MINNEAPOLIS — Vikings left tackle Christian Darrisaw, one of the best blindside blockers in the NFL, will require season-ending knee surgery, a league source confirmed.

Darrisaw was hit from behind by a Rams defender tackling running back Aaron Jones just before halftime of the Vikings’ 30-20 loss on Thursday night. He fell to the turf clutching his left knee. Teammates circled around him, fearing the worst. Those fears were realized on Friday when tests confirmed that Darrisaw’s season is over after seven games. The nature of Darrisaw’s injury has not been made public.

“Obviously hurting,” right tackle Brian O’Neill said at SoFi Stadium after the game. “Anytime you lose one of the best players at his position in the NFL for any period of time, even if it’s just a half, that will be felt. We’re going to have to lift him up. He knows he’s got a lot of support here. He knows he’s going to be a really good player for a long time here. Just thinking about him and praying for him right now.”

The Vikings offense will have to find a way forward without a franchise cornerstone. Darrisaw was rewarded with a four-year, $76 million contract in July as the front office prioritized extensions with him following receiver Justin Jefferson’s mega contract in June.

David Quessenberry, a 34-year-old journeyman initially signed before last season, replaced Darrisaw for the rest of the game and would presumably start for him on Nov. 3 against the Colts.

Regarding the play Darrisaw was injured, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell explained his decision to call a run instead of a pass with 35 seconds before halftime from the Vikings’ 3-yard line. They had three timeouts available.

“Sean [McVay] still had the one timeout left,” O’Connell said. “We ended up backed up in that situation. They had [six defensive backs] on the field, so [I] thought we could maybe pop a run ... and then maybe take a timeout, reset and try to get a couple chunks. We’ve got a kicker that can hit it from a long way away.”