'Confident' Lewis Cine isn't thinking about chances of making Vikings' roster

Cine looked excellent on Saturday. "I think that happens when I'm healthy."

Aug 20, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings safety Lewis Cine (6) warms up before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at U.S. Bank Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Lewis Cine put together his best game in a Vikings uniform last Saturday, racking up 11 tackles, an interception, and a sack in a preseason win in Cleveland. The former first-round pick out of Georgia was all over the field and finally looked like his college self again. But was it enough to get him on Minnesota's 53-man roster?

"I don't know for sure," Cine said after practice on Tuesday. "That's not really what I'm thinking about, I'm just thinking about stacking another one. Add on to that, handle the things I can handle, and let the pieces fall where they may. I'm not oblivious to knowing this is a business at the end of the day, but I'm confident in myself, I'm confident in the player that I am. A healthy me is a dangerous me, so that's all I can say about that."

Cine played every single defensive snap in the win over the Browns, which tells you a lot about the battle he's still facing to make the team. After suffering a significant leg injury as a rookie and then learning a new scheme last year, he's been buried on the safety depth chart behind Harrison Smith, Cam Bynum, Josh Metellus, Theo Jackson, and others.

It remains to be seen (no pun intended) if Cine's stellar performance on Saturday did enough to convince the Vikings' coaches and front office to keep him around for another year. What it might've done is raise his trade value a bit and put other teams around the league on alert. The Vikings will presumably play Cine a ton once again in this Saturday's preseason finale against the Eagles — both to evaluate him themselves and to put him on display for trade purposes.

The 24-year-old Cine may still have some untapped upside heading into his third season. Whether he gets a chance to show that with the Vikings or with another team is the big question. Against the Browns, he was flying around and making plays.

"I think that happens when I'm healthy," Cine said.

Roster cutdown day is next Tuesday, August 27.