MINNEAPOLIS — Injured Vikings safety Lewis Cine is scheduled to return to Minnesota from London on Saturday.
Cine stayed behind in London to rest after getting surgery on his broken leg.
Cine was blocking on the punt return team in the first quarter at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when he suffered the gruesome injury, a compound fracture in which the bone punctured the skin.
He had a preparatory procedure on Sunday after Minnesota beat New Orleans 28-25 and the full operation on Tuesday at the Cleveland Clinic London Hospital performed by Dr. Aswinkumar Vasireddy, the orthopedic trauma group lead surgeon.
On Wednesday, Cine celebrated his 23rd birthday in his hospital bed and his teammates sang "Happy Birthday" to him via Zoom.
"He's doing really well coming off that procedure. He's excited to get back," head coach Kevin O'Connell said in a news conference.
Drafted with the 32nd overall pick from Georgia's national championship team, Cine was brought along slowly in training camp and beaten out by second-year player Camryn Bynum for the starting safety spot next to six-time Pro Bowl pick Harrison Smith.
Cine had been limited to special teams, where his first NFL season ended in a fluky and painful fashion.
Cine was placed on injured reserve on Tuesday after the surgery.