One of the most intriguing names to land on the waiver wire following roster cutdown day was safety Lewis Cine .
The Minnesota Vikings' 2022 first-round pick has endured terrible luck in the early years o this career, Cine limited to just 10 defensive snaps across his first two years in the league after suffering a compound leg fracture on a punt coverage play in Week 4 of his rookie year. That injury required two surgeries.
The Vikings had been trying to trade Cine despite an impressive preseason in which he made eight solo tackles and also had a sack and an interception, displaying the kind of athletic gifts that convinced former 49ers front office member Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to make him his first pick as GM of the Vikings.
Despite those performances, Cine went unclaimed on waivers, freeing him up to sign with any team.
With the physical gifts he had in college seemingly largely unaffected by his devastating injury, Cine would appear to be an excellent fit for the San Francisco 49ers as a high-upside backup at the safety spot.
In preseason, Cine demonstrated the closing speed to the football and physicality that are hallmarks of what the 49ers look for at the safety position. San Francisco's safeties are fast, decisive in reading and reacting to what they see, and hit with bone-jarring thump.
But the 49ers' decision to activate 2022 All-Pro Talanoa Hufanga, who is set to return to the starting defense and form what could be an outstanding safety pairing with Ji'Ayir Brown, from PUP lessens the need for San Francisco to add at the position.
The 49ers are hoping Brown can enjoy a breakout year after a highly encouraging rookie season that saw him move into a starting role after Hufanga tore his ACL in November, his first year in the league capped by an interception of Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl.
If Brown can make the leap and Hufanga returns to somewhere approaching his 2022 form, the 49ers will be in an excellent spot at safety, with core special teamer George Odum and rookie fourth-round pick Malik Mustapha set to serve as backups after both excelled in training camp and preseason.
With Hufanga coming off an injury, there is a case to be made that the 49ers could use another player at safety as additional insurance.
Cine may fit the mold and has high upside, but it's unlikely that, if the Niners are interested in additional insurance, they would look to a safety net with very little experience playing regular-season football because of a very serious leg injury.
The 49ers have sufficient options on the active roster at safety in whom they have faith while veteran Tracy Walker III has reportedly signed to the practice squad as Week 1 cover for Hufanga. Cine would be an excellent fit for the Niners, but San Francisco's need is no longer big enough for the 49ers to consider signing the former Georgia Bulldog, whose injury history would likely give them pause even if Hufanga wasn't healthy.
Related: San Francisco 49ers practice squad tracker: Keeping tabs of all the additions to the 17-man group
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