Where do the Minnesota Vikings go from here after 1-5 start?

Where do the Minnesota Vikings go after a brutal loss drops them to 1-5?

A little over three years ago, the Minnesota Vikings were one game away from reaching the Super Bowl in 2017 and made another deep playoff run in 2019 when they reached the NFC Divisional Round.

In the 2020 NFL season, they are near the bottom of the league standings and wondering where things have gone wrong going into a bye week in Week 7. Boy, how things can change in the blink of an eye in the NFL.

On Sunday afternoon in Week 6 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, the Vikings fell to the winless Atlanta Falcons while dropping to a brutal record of 1-5 overall through six weeks of action. Now, going into a bye week this upcoming week, Minnesota has more questions than answers surrounding the team in terms of how it moves forward from here.

The Vikings came into the season with the hopes of making another deep playoff run while challenging the likes of the Green Bay Packers for the NFC North title. Just six short weeks later, Minnesota is now in the running for one of the top spots in the upcoming NFL Draft.

Sunday’s Week 6 loss to Atlanta was another example of just how bad things have been and have gone in Minnesota so far in 2020. But it hasn’t just been one game, it’s been the season as a whole. This brings up the question if a coaching change needs to occur or if it’s more of a player issue on the team.

Do the Minnesota Vikings need to make major changes?

The fifth loss of the year for the Vikings was one that could start with a coach or general getting fired, although there haven’t been any indications that Minnesota would want to part ways with head coach Mike Zimmer or general manager Rick Spielman.

The other aspect that was exposed mightily in Week 6 was the way quarterback Kirk Cousins looked. The performance was arguably one of the worst as a Viking, further expanding on the question of if the team should view him as a long term option.

Going into the Week 7 bye week, the Vikings offense hasn’t looked spectacular like many expected out of them and the defense has taken a large step back with a shift in personnel on that side of the field in 2020.

Does that mean it should be time for Zimmer and/or Spielman to go or is that premature? Does that mean the Vikings should start planning on the future of the franchise without Cousins under center or do they further commit to him beyond this year?

If change does take place, Minnesota has cornerstone players such as Adam Thielen, Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson and multiple other players on the defensive side of the ball that it could build on. There are solid pieces in place.

One thing is certain to take place this week while the Vikings go into their bye, and that is the organization will evaluate everything including where they go from here. It will be interesting to see if that sparks any moves being made or if Minnesota rides out the rest of the year before making any of those decisions.