Vikings surprise Lewis Cine with happy birthday Zoom call

Although they couldn’t be with him in person, that didn’t stop Minnesota Vikings players from wishing rookie defensive back Lewis Cine a happy 23rd birthday.

Still in London recovering from two surgeries to fix a compound fracture in his left leg suffered in Minnesota’s 28-25 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, Cine was expecting a one-on-one virtual meeting with head coach Kevin O’Connell.

Instead, the Georgia alum was surprised by Minnesota’s 53-man roster as they connected via Zoom during team meetings on Wednesday.

“We got a chance to have him be a part of our team meeting and wish him happy birthday as a group,” O’Connell told reporters on Wednesday. “It was a really special kind of moment, and hopefully we can get him back here soon.

“…I think he thought something was up when we had him downloading Zoom on his phone. It was a special moment in our team meeting setting to be able to get his face up on the screen. The guys went crazy, and we sang him happy birthday.”

O’Connell stated that he’s hopeful that Cine can fly back to Minnesota later in the week once he’s cleared for travel. The first-year head coach disclosed that the team flew members of Cine’s family to London to be by his side during his recovery.

“His surgery went really well; I cannot say enough good things about the care he’s received in London at the Cleveland Clinic London [Hospital] over there — the doctors, the surgeons, their dialogue with our medical staff,” O’Connell added. “Hoping to get him home here towards the later part of this week, hopefully.”