The Philadelphia Eagles have added a familiar face — at least to some of their defensive players — to their roster for their NFC Wild Card playoff opener against the Green Bay Packers.
Philadelphia added safety and former first round pick Lewis Cine to their 53-man roster, poaching Cine from the Buffalo Bills practice squad on January 8 — just 4 days before facing the Packers.
The Minnesota Vikings selected Cine in the first round (No. 32 overall) of the 2022 NFL draft out of the University of Georgia. He joins an Eagles lineup that features 4 former Bulldogs as starters on the No. 1 ranked defense in the NFL.
“Cine was a 2022 first-round pick by the Vikings, but he suffered a compound fracture to his leg during his rookie season,” Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper wrote on January 8. “He appeared in seven games last year and made one appearance for the Bills in the regular season. Most of his playing time has come on special teams and Cine has been credited with one career tackle.”
Career-Threatening Injury After Sparkling College Career
Cine played for University of Colorado head coach and Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders at Trinity Christian School in Cedar Hill, Texas, before becoming a star at Georgia.
Cine capped his career with the Bulldogs by leading his team to the College Football Playoff National Championship, earning All-SEC honors and CFP National Championship Game Defensive MVP honors in a win over SEC rival Alabama.
The Vikings took Cine, 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, in the first round after he ran a blazing, 4.37-second 40-yard dash at the NFL combine and signed him to a 4-year, $11.49 million contract.
Cine’s career took an unexpected turn just 1 month into his rookie season when he suffered a compound fracture to his left leg in Week 4 — an injury that required 2 surgeries. Cine only played 7 games in 2023 and 10 games in total before he was eventually cut by the Vikings as part of their final roster cuts in 2024 and picked up by the Bills.
Eagles Went Georgia Heavy in 2022 and 2023 Drafts
The Eagles and general manager Howie Roseman became known for their affinity for Georgia defensive players over the 2022 and 2023 drafts, when they took 5 Bulldog defenders in the 2 drafts — players they’ve built their defense around.
Most notably, Philadelphia used 3 consecutive first-round picks over those 2 years to take Georgia defensive players — defensive tackle Jordan Davis (No. 13 overall) in 2022 followed by defensive tackle Jalen Carter (No. 9 overall) and outside linebacker Nolan Smith Jr. (No. 30 overall) in 2023.
Of that group, Carter might be the biggest prize of them all after he had a breakout season in 2023 while earning NFL All-Pro honors and was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time. Carter finished the 2024 season with 42 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 12 TFL, 16 QB hits, 6 pass deflections and 2 forced fumbles.
“My favorite sleeper whose name is starting to come up among the top defensive players in the league is the Eagles’ Jalen Carter,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote on December 18. “It’s probably too soon for him to win it this season, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he became a fixture in these discussions in future seasons, maybe as early as next year.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Eagles Add Former First Round Pick to Playoff Roster appeared first on Heavy Sports.