Lewis Cine Expresses Confidence and Patience in His Injury Recovery
Josh Frey
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On Monday, the Minnesota Vikings began their voluntary offseason workout program, and as the program got underway, 2022 first-round pick Lewis Cine took to the podium to answer questions regarding his injury recovery over the offseason and where he expects to be when the season gets underway.
Cine, the No. 32 overall pick last spring, suffered a gruesome compound leg fracture in Week 4 of the Vikings 2022 season against the New Orleans Saints that knocked him out for the remainder of his rookie year. In terms of where he is currently at in his recovery process, Cine described it as a “progression”.
“Just taking it a day at a time. I’m not trying to look too far ahead, you know, I’m not trying to do that so [I can] just be where my feet are,” the Vikings safety explained.
Throughout this offseason, head coach Kevin O’Connell has been very vocal about how proud he is of Cine for attacking his recovery process head-on, noting that he has been in the facilities basically every day and has been eager to ramp things up.
Of course, with an injury as serious as Cine’s, it can be difficult to know exactly when and how to level up the intensity in the workouts, and there will obviously be ups and downs throughout such a long recovery process. The second-year safety also spoke on what his mindset has been through the ups and downs of this process.
“It all started with mindset. Like, what’s my mindset? What’s my mindset going into rehab? Am I going into rehab and [showing] pity for myself like, why me? Or am I really looking in the mirror and telling myself ‘Let me go attack the day.'” Cine reflected on his rehab saying, “Rehab is a grueling process. Sometimes it sucks, so motivation is not enough. It’s about self-discipline to, you know, be okay with getting just a little bit better day in and day out.”
Heading into the second season of Cine’s career, the hope remains that he will be ready to go for Week 1 of the 2023 campaign, and that the safety will be a key part of the Vikings defense as Harrison Smith heads into what could be one of his final NFL seasons.
In 2022, Cine finished his year appearing in three games, taking 34 snaps with the special teams and 2 with the defense.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.