Latest Report Suggests Two Former Top Vikings Draft Picks Could Be Waived
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s first draft with the Minnesota Vikings was an up and down roller coaster.
While some depth picks like CB Akayleb Evans and RB Ty Chandler along with second-round RG Ed Ingram have captured roles in Minnesota over their first two NFL seasons, the top picks of that Vikings draft (Lewis Cine, Andrew Booth) have failed to do so.
Now, according to the most recent reports out of Minnesota, both Booth and Cine could be in danger of being waived this summer when the Vikings finalize their 53-man roster for the 2024 season.
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The report comes from Charley Walters of The Pioneer Press who laid out the cases for why each of Booth and Cine could be cut by the end of training camp.
“Former Vikings 1st-round safety bust Lewis Cine, because he’s guaranteed $4 million over the next two seasons, is untradeable. It’s likely he’ll get waived in training camp. If a team were to claim him, it would be responsible for the $4 million. After clearing waivers, some team might be willing to sign him as a FA,” Walters wrote in regard to Cine’s status in Minnesota.
Cine’s lack of development in Minnesota isn’t entirely on him. Fans will remember that he lost virtually his entire rookie season because of a gruesome leg fracture, and he spent the majority of the remainder of that season and the following offseason in recovery.
Then, Cine was again put on the backburner in 2023 because Brian Flores found a gem in Josh Metellus, and the 2020 sixth-round pick played virtually every position for the Vikings over the course of the season while Camryn Bynum and Harrison Smith handled the more traditional safety roles.
Still, though, it should should be noted that Cine was not necessarily in the plans for the Vikings defense even before his leg fracture (he played just 34 special teams snaps and only two defensive snaps prior to the injury). As a result, it will be very tough to convince a team to take him on via trade, and Minnesota still has one of the deeper safety rooms in the NFL after returning their entire starting trio and some depth in Theo Jackson.
As for Booth, his status in 2024 may be far less cut and dry. Minnesota has a very intriguing cornerback battle ahead of them this summer with Byron Murphy being the only player who seems certain to make the roster in a starting capacity.
Walters opined on Booth, “A 2nd-round pick, CB Andrew Booth, who is guaranteed $900,000 next season, seems close to being done as a Viking.”
Like Cine, Booth was buried on Minnesota’s depth chart heading into his rookie season of 2022, and when he finally made his first career start against the Dallas Cowboys, he suffered a torn meniscus that ended his season.
In total, Booth has appeared in 23 games (two starts) for the Vikings in his first two seasons, and he has recorded 20 tackles and has defended one pass. He has played a grand total of 256 snaps with Minnesota’s defense, so more than Cine, but still not a very inspiring amount.
Ultimately, there is still a long way to go before the Vikings trim their roster down from 90 players to 53, but the rumblings of two former top picks being cuts will only continue to grow if they do not garner more faith from Minnesota’s coaching staff as the summer goes on.
OTAs are scheduled to begin in one week on May 20th.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference.
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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.