Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice is expected to play a big part in their passing offense. He’s one of the more dynamic young receivers and quickly established himself as one of quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ favorite targets.
Rice seemed to be on his way to a breakout year in 2024. Over his first four games, he had 24 receptions for 288 yards and two touchdowns, but in Week 4, he tore his ACL and was out for the season.
Rice’s knee is fully healed and ready to go, but he will miss the 2025 season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers for reasons unrelated to his knee.
Why is Rashee Rice Out Against the Chargers?
In March 2024, Rice was involved in a multi-vehicle crash on a highway in Dallas. Rice was driving a Lamborghini at more than 119 mph. Rice also fled the scene without checking on the welfare of the crash victims.
Rice ended up taking responsibility for his actions and pleaded guilty to two third-degree felony charges of collision involving bodily injury and racing on a highway, causing bodily injury. In July 2025, Rice was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five years’ probation.
After his sentencing, the NFLÂ originally wanted to suspend Rice for double-digit games, but the NFLPA and Rice’s representation resisted that notion.
Rice was suspended for the first six weeks of the 2025 season without pay. Rice is not allowed to practice with the team and is not eligible for reinstatement until October 13.
In addition to the game against the Chargers, Rice will miss tilts against the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Detroit Lions. His first game back should be against the Las Vegas Raiders.
In the interim, the Chiefs will rely on Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown, and JuJu Smith-Schuster as receivers. Worthy, who blew up in the 2024 playoffs, has been touted as a potential breakout player in 2025.
In two playoff games and the Super Bowl, Worthy racked up 19 receptions on 21 targets for 287 yards and three touchdowns.
Add a rejuvenated tight end like Travis Kelce to the mix, and the Chiefs could get their downfield passing game cooking again.
The key for the Chiefs is improving their bad deep passing game. In 2024, only 39.5% of Mahomes’s passes traveled further than 15 yards, ranking him 29th in the NFL in deep passes.
It will be harder to do that without Rice in the fold. However, when he returns, we can expect him to become a crucial part of the team once again.
