Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell opens up about 'catastrophic' Lewis Cine injury

The Vikings coach called it "one of the harder" moments of his career.

Author:
Joe Nelson
Publish date:
Oct 7, 2022 10:35 AM EDT

The Vikings coach called it "one of the harder" moments of his career.

Seeing rookie safety Lewis Cine in pain immediately after he snapped his leg on a punt return play was "one of the harder" moments of Kevin O'Connell's career.

"Going out there to be with Lew on the field just immediately after the injury was quite honestly one of the harder things I've done since I became a head coach and even going back further than that," O'Connell said on "X's and O's," a weekly show that airs on KFAN radio and the Vikings website.

O'Connell described it as a "catastrophic" injury and a "serious situation."

"Any time there is a fracture of that magnitude that does indeed break the skin, there's whole levels of importance to that immediate care right after," he said.

Cine's lower left leg snapped when he was racing downfield as part of the Vikings' punt return unit. Medical staff rushed onto the field and put his leg in an air cast before he was taken to a hospital in London for emergency care.

"What I wanted to do is be there for Lew and let him know that I was out there with him. And that's not going to stop until he's back out on the field making plays for us," O'Connell said. "But what I did notice is just our entire team, practice squad, every single guy on our roster, coming out to want to at least let Lew know the same thing. I thought that was a really special moment."

Special teams coordinator Matt Daniels can relate to Cine. Daniels revealed Thursday that he suffered "that same exact injury" – a compound leg fracture – when he was playing for the St. Louis Rams in 2012.

"I just shared my experience with him," Daniels said. "I understand what he's going through, that trauma."

"You have to find a way to not get down and ask yourself, 'Why me? Why me?' " Daniels explained. "I think that's where I found myself trying to figure out why this was happening to me after a college career where I was pretty clean, no injuries. Then I come into this league, and it's back-to-back years I end up having season-ending injuries."

A timetable for Cine's return is unknown, though his rookie season is over.

He underwent surgery Tuesday and remains in London until he's able to fly back to Minneapolis and continue the recovery and rehabilitation process at Vikings headquarters in Eagan.

"When the time's right, I cannot wait to get him back here in this building with us and ultimately wrap our arms around him and let him know that everything's going to be OK," said O'Connell. "We're going to be with him on every step of the way on this journey back."

Cine was drafted 32nd overall by the Vikings after he starred at Georgia, where he was named the defensive MVP of the national championship game.