Minnesota Vikings rookie safety Lewis Cine is trusting the process when it comes to his transition from college to the NFL level.
Nothing comes easy when competing against the best players in the world, and Cine is getting a first-hand glimpse of it in his ongoing training camp battle with veteran Camryn Bynum.
So far, Bynum has been taking the majority of the first-team reps, which has come as a bit of a surprise with many expecting Cine to just waltz right into the starting role.
The first-round draft pick out of the University of Georgia sent out a tweet on Wednesday that acknowledged the learning curve in the NFL. As Cine put it, this is a “marathon not a sprint.”
𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕒 𝕄𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕟 𝕟𝕠𝕥 𝕒 𝕊𝕡𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕥 pic.twitter.com/gWpoaWHq9y
— ⱠɆ₩ł₴ ₵ł₦Ɇ (@LewisCine) August 3, 2022
It’s a mature mindset for a young defensive back expected to be one of the future stars of the team.
Make no mistake, it was never going to be an easy job to win with Bynum also ascending as a player. And of course, legendary safety Harrison Smith tops the depth chart.
Cine will eventually work his way into the top unit, either through outright beating Bynum for the starting job or being involved in defensive packages that utilize three safeties.
It’s a good problem for the Vikings to have with a veteran putting up more of a fight than expected against a rookie first-round pick, who just won the Defensive MVP in the Bulldogs’ national championship victory over Alabama.
Cine’s time is coming, and it’ll probably be sooner rather than later.
