Vikings top 2022 draft pick already getting first-team reps

Rookie safety Lewis Cine, selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2022 NFL Draft, was on the field with the first-team defense during Wednesday’s practice.

Of the 10 players the Minnesota Vikings added to their roster a few weeks ago during the 2022 NFL Draft, former Georgia safety Lewis Cine arguably has the best chance to begin the upcoming regular season as a starter.

Of course, Cine was the first guy the Vikings even selected in this year’s draft, so most would assume that his chances to get significant playing time in 2022 would be the highest.

Typically, rookies in the NFL are brought along slowly when teams hold their OTA practice sessions and mandatory minicamps during the spring. This has been the case for the most part when it comes to Cine, but on Wednesday, Minnesota’s top 2022 draft pick had the chance to step on the field with the first-team defense for a bit according to Vikings.com’s Craig Peters.

Lewis Cine one of multiple young players to get first-team work during Minnesota Vikings minicamp

Cine wasn’t the only rookie to get some opportunities to work with the first-team defense during Wednesday’s minicamp practice.

Peters revealed that undrafted rookie outside linebacker Luiji Vilain also got some snaps with the first-team defensive unit during a situational drill on Wednesday.

In addition to these two first-year players getting reps with the top defensive unit, veteran cornerback Kris Boyd and pass rusher Janarius Robinson also spent some time on the field with the first-team defense during the minicamp session according to Peters.

To be fair, these rookies and young reserves were given opportunities with the first-team unit in part due to the Vikings giving some of the older veterans some extra time to rest. But that doesn’t make it any less intriguing that Cine has already been given some reps with the top defense and that it happened before training camp.