Though the Kansas City Chiefs added Hollywood Brown and Xavier Worthy to the roster, the cloud hanging over Rashee Rice and his availability this season remains a mystery. With reports suggesting it could be a lengthy suspension by the NFL, should the team sign a veteran receiver to hedge their bets?
The trio of Hollywood Brown, Rashee Rice, and Xavier Worthy might be among the best three amigos in the NFL. The sky is the limit for the Chiefs’ offense if healthy and available. Add Travis Kelce and Isiah Pacheco to the mix, and suddenly, Patrick Mahomes has no weaknesses on the field.
However, James Palmer, formerly of the NFL Network, indicated the Chiefs are bracing for a significant suspension for Rice. In his words, eight games are not out of the question. Now, it’s far too early to determine what the actual number of games missed Rice is facing, but the Chiefs must plan on the worst-case scenario.
So, should they add a veteran receiver such as Tyler Boyd or, dare I say it, Odell Beckham Jr.?
Kansas City still has Justin Watson, Kadarius Toney, Skyy Moore, and Nikko Remigio on the roster. Only Watson has shown any consistency in the last two years. Granted, Remigio tore his ACL in the preseason, but he’s a significant wild card for this offense. Now healthy, can he soften the loss of Rice in the Chiefs’ offense?
General Manager Brett Veach emphatically praises Toney, who, in his mind, is the Chiefs’ best wide receiver. They are not giving up on him—so much so that he has participated in the Mahomes Texas workouts and has been doing extra work to break free of the stigma to climb the mountain of his potential.
I’m a Toney fan, and I agree that if he’s focused, healthy, and willing to put in the hard work to be a great NFL receiver, the Chiefs’ offense will be unstoppable. However, if that’s not the case, a veteran addition makes sense for Kansas City with the Rice suspension looming.
Rice’s suspension might not happen this year. Until the legal proceedings against him are settled, the NFL can’t suspend him under its player conduct guidelines. So, it’s possible Rice could play the entire season for the Chiefs. However, that means he’ll be suspended to open the 2025 season.
Straight ahead, the charges by Dallas Police have been filed, but they’ve not set a court date or indicated a plea deal was imminent. Once the case is settled, Rice faces a pair of Civil suits from three crash victims.
It should be noted that despite the lofty numbers in those civil lawsuits, Rice’s net worth doesn’t match the money they seek. So, it’s reasonable to assume a settlement will eventually be reached.
Regardless of the legal proceedings, Rice is back to work with the Chiefs, and I’m sure he wants to put this mess behind him as quickly as possible. The best thing he can do is leave the off-the-field stuff to his capable Attorney, Royce West.
On the field, he must prepare for the 2024 season and earn the trust of his teammates all over again. Without Rice’s emergence last year, I don’t think the Chiefs would have made their infamous Super Bowl run.
That’s how valuable he is to the offense. Even with the addition of Brown and Worthy, his importance is irreplaceable. He knows the system and learned to improvise his routes playing with Mahomes.
The Chiefs’ rookie mini camp begins Friday, and perhaps one of their signees shows enough promise to be a wild card for the roster. Until that happens and the legal case for Rice ends, Kansas City should be in the market for a veteran receiver.
