Minnesota Vikings select Georgia safety Lewis Cine in 2022 NFL Draft
The Minnesota Vikings are banking on Georgia product Lewis Cine to come in and transform their secondary. He did it throughout his time in Athens, and the former Bulldogs safety will be expected to do the same in his NFL career. That’s why the Vikings took him off the board early in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Thursday night, picking him No. 32 overall.
During his time with the Bulldogs, Cine elevated his game consistently, leading an exceptional Georgia defense as part of a tremendous secondary. Last season, Cine realized his dream of bringing a championship to Georgia, helping to end a drought that spanned over 40 years when the Bulldogs defeated Alabama in the 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Additionally, the former Georgia star received the gigantic honor of being named the 2022 National Championship Defensive MVP for his efforts against the Crimson Tide.
Most importantly to the Vikings, Cine has the potential to evolve into one of the top defensive backs in the entire NFL. He steadily improved throughout his time at Georgia, accumulating 144 total tackles, 14 pass deflections and two interceptions for a loaded Bulldogs squad over three seasons.
A former four-star recruit in the class of 2019, Cine was the No. 2 safety in the nation per the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average. Cine played his high school football at the Trinity Christian School in Cedar Hill, Texas. Continuing, Cine joined the Bulldogs as one of the top recruits in the entire nation, ranking No. 42 overall in On3’s 2019 Consensus Top Football Recruits rankings. Continually, Cine terrorized the talented opposing SEC quarterbacks for the Bulldogs defense.
What NFL draft analysts are saying about Lewis Cine
Furthermore, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com broke down what Lewis Cine can bring to the NFL in his recent scout of the safety’s draft profile. The analyst compared the Georgia product to Anthony Harris, a former undrafted free agent out of Virginia who led the NFL in interceptions in 2019. While every team passed on Harris in the 2015 NFL Draft, he’s made a nice NFL career for himself with the Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles. Over the course of his seven-year career, Harris has accumulated 356 tackles, 28 pass deflections and ten interceptions.
“Cine plays with a willing aggressiveness that fit right in with Georgia’s talented stop unit,” wrote Zierlein. “He plays with an urgent, downhill approach, which leads to memorable collisions but he’s not always under control in getting there. He doesn’t have desired mass and stopping power for his style of play, but the work gets done. Cine lacks range and instincts to play over the top and is better suited to split safety and down safety alignments. He can handle man coverage underneath but doesn’t have the hips to swing and sway with talented receivers down the field.
“Cine has future starting potential as a zero flinch safety, but has limitations for defenses to consider.”