Lewis Cine Is Listed as Inactive Once Again
The Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers are set to do battle inside U.S. Bank Stadium in just over an hour.
Ahead of that game, the Vikings have listed six players as inactive prior to the matchup. Obviously, one of those players in LG Ezra Cleveland, who was ruled out with a foot injury on Saturday.
However, the more concerning part of the Vikings inactive list is the fact that Lewis Cine remains a healthy scratch. The 2022 first-round pick will now miss his fourth consecutive game and hasn’t played since Week 3 against the Chargers.
Lewis Cine Is Listed as Inactive Once Again
Here is a look at the full Vikings inactive list heading into tonight’s game:
- OT Hakeem Adeniji
- OLB Andre Carter
- S Lewis Cine
- LG Ezra Cleveland
- TE Nick Muse
- CB NaJee Thompson
The conversation around Cine is a bit complicated, of course, considering he missed the majority of his rookie season with a compound fracture in his leg. That being said, the safety wasn’t getting much playing time prior to the injury, and that has continued into his second NFL season.
Typically, a first-round pick is expected to be an immediate contributor for the team that selects him. For instance, this has been the case for the Vikings 2023 first-round selection, Jordan Addison, who is among the NFL’s leaders in touchdown receptions.
For Cine, though, the safety has played just two defensive snaps over his first season-plus in the NFL. He is yet to appear with the defense during the 2023 season.
Injuries have been a bit of an issue to begin the year for Cine. Not only was he still ramping up from his leg injury during training camp, but he also appeared on the injury report a few times with a hamstring problem.
That did not happen ahead of this game, though. Cine has not been on the injury report since he was listed as a full participant ahead of Minnesota’s Week 6 game against Chicago.
The saving grace for Cine is that the Vikings simply have great depth at safety this season. Not only is veteran stalwart Harrison Smith still around, but Minneota has also gotten great production out of both Camryn Bynum and Josh Metellus.
Perhaps the play of this trio means the Vikings are content with allowing Cine to reset and regroup for next season or even later this year should one of the players above him get hurt. Regardless, it is a bit disheartening to see a player get utilized so little after such a high draft selection.
The book on the Vikings 2022 Draft class certainly hasn’t been closed yet, but things will need to change quickly before it does. The group as a whole has struggled to maintain meaningful positions on the roster, and Cine’s Week 7 scratch is the latest example of that. Hopefully, the Vikings can find a way to rejuvenate his career sooner rather than later.
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.
