Chargers Work Out for Vikings Defender
Former Minnesota Vikings safety Lewis Cine is currently on a world tour of sorts, trying to find just the right team that needs a practice squad safety.
A former Vikings safety worked out for the Chargers as he continues seeking a practice squad role after his Super Bowl win with the Eagles in 2024.
Cine stopped in Los Angeles late last week, firing up an audition with Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers, the club that dismantled the Vikings a few days ago.
Chargers Give Lewis Cine a Tryout
Cine could have a new employer soon.
Cine Auditions for Chargers after Week 8
Los Angeles has given Cine a gander, though no contract has materialized as of October 27th.
SI.com‘s Thomas Martinez wrote late last week, “Veteran safety Tony Jefferson and cornerback Tarheeb Still also left banged up while safety Elijah Molden was on the injury report and limited all week. Multiple defensive tackles are on injured reserve as well, including Otito Ogbonnia and Da’Shawn Hand. Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz brought in multiple defenders for a workout on Friday, including former Vikings first-round pick hard-hitting safety Lewis Cine.”
“Among the group of defenders brought in for a workout were several familiar faces. Defensive tackle Christopher Hinton who played for Jim Harbaugh at Michigan as well as the Chargers since coming into the league as an undrafted free agent. Safety Marcus Maye had a brief stint in Los Angeles in 2024 as well.”
With any luck and among multiple tryouts, Cine should get a practice squad contract from some team before too long.
The Patriots Last Week
Cine has actually tried valiantly to find a job this month. A few weeks ago, he auditioned for the Indianapolis Colts’ roster, a club that has a bevy of former Vikings rolling around the depth chart, including quarterback Daniel Jones, safety Camryn Bynum, and cornerback Mekhi Blackmon.
That tryout didn’t move the needle.
Then, last week, Cine hoped to latch on to the bottom of the New England Patriots roster, but Mike Vrabel and friends evidently said no thanks, or at least, “We are good for now.”
Assuming the Chargers’ arrangement goes the same way, Cine will keep booking tryouts and hoping for the best.
Expectations for Cine Henceforth
Cine turned 26 on October 5th, and if he had progressed like a normal 1st-Rounder, he’d be entering his career prime right about now. That obviously has not worked out.
So, at this point, no franchise will sign him to its 53-man roster, and he’ll bounce around the workout circuit hoping for a practice squad opportunity. His chances of rekindling his career grow fainter by the minute, especially when no team will take the bait for a practice squad contract.
His ceiling, in the meantime, is a possible practice squad assignment, which is even beginning to feel like a long shot.
Cine’s Career in Minnesota
Every draft guru, mock savant, and armchair GM had Cine pegged as a late-first or early-second-round gem in 2022 — and every one of them got it dead wrong. Minnesota swung for his upside and violent athleticism anyway, betting on speed and violence over polish, and the whole thing detonated almost immediately.
A gruesome leg fracture torpedoed his rookie campaign before it ever really began, and by the time he got back, the league — and the Vikings’ depth chart — had moved on without him.
When the Vikings took him, the thinking was obvious: Harrison Smith was nearing the twilight, and Cine would be next in line to inherit the mantle. Except Smith never truly faded away. He kept right on playing at a starter’s level into his mid-thirties, while the safety room around him quietly became one of the team’s deepest units. Camryn Bynum emerged. Josh Metellus became indispensable. Jay Ward flashed versatility.
Suddenly, Cine was the odd man out. Even Theo Jackson — a 2022 6th-Rounder Tennessee didn’t want — slid into the very role Cine was drafted to own.
So his four-year NFL odyssey now reads like this:
- Minnesota Vikings (2022–2023)
- Buffalo Bills (2024)
- Philadelphia Eagles (2024–2025)
Three teams, zero impact.
Cine never found a foothold anywhere, though he did manage to walk away from Philadelphia with a Super Bowl ring — a strange footnote for a player who didn’t take a single meaningful snap to earn it. His story has become one of those cautionary tales scouts whisper about: the athletic freak who looked like the future, until the future said nope.
More on the Chargers’ Defense
Pro Football Network‘s Jason Katz wrote about the Chargers’ defense this week from a fantasy football angle: “Death. Taxes. Streaming defenses against the Titans. Every season, there’s usually that one team fantasy managers should be attacking each week. This year, it’s the Titans. Halfway through the season, the Titans are allowing the most fantasy points per game to opposing defenses, and it’s not close. Cam Ward has thrown an interception in six consecutive games and has taken at least two sacks in every game.”
“The Chargers are coming off a really strong performance on Thursday night against an injured Carson Wentz. In addition to being well rested with the mini-bye, the Titans are a worse offense than the Vikings. The only knock on this matchup is that the Chargers are on the road. But that shouldn’t matter too much. The Chargers remain a top option in Week 9.”
The Chargers also employ former Vikings players Tyler Conklin (TE) and Troy Dye (LB).
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