While the Kansas City Chiefs are still determining the severity of Rashee Rice’s knee injury, their latest move sheds some light on the future of the second-year wide receiver.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Chiefs placed Rice on injured reserve Thursday, meaning he will miss at least four games.
In a 17-10 Week 4 win over the Los Angeles Chargers (2-2), Rice collided with Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who was attempting to tackle Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton after he intercepted the QB. Rice was then carted off the field. Following the victory, Schefter reported that the Chiefs feared he tore his ACL.
Earlier this week, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid confirmed Rice will miss Monday’s home game vs. the New Orleans Saints (2-2). In his Thursday news conference, Reid said the Chiefs are in “wait-and-see mode” because they plan to do more testing when the swelling in Rice’s knee goes down.
“For his sake, we’re really hoping things work out for the best, but let’s just see where it goes,” Reid said. “Leave it up to the doctors to see. I’m definitely not a doctor.”
If Rice misses the rest of the season, that would be a costly blow for K.C. (4-0) and its Super Bowl chances. Through four games, Rice leads the team in receptions (24), receiving yards (288) and touchdown catches (two). Per Pro Football Focus, he has 185 yards after the catch, the third-highest mark in the league.
With Rice out of the lineup against the Saints, the Chiefs may increase rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy’s workload. In the Week 4 win over L.A., he caught a 54-yard TD pass. According to ESPN’s Adam Teicher, the ball traveled 54 yards through the air, the longest distance in Mahomes’ career.
Don’t be surprised if the Chiefs acquire another WR before the trade deadline on Nov. 5, perhaps DeAndre Hopkins (Tennessee Titans) or Amari Cooper (Cleveland Browns).
Over the last two seasons, K.C. dealt for a WR before the deadline passed (Kadarius Toney in 2022 and Mecole Hardman Jr. in 2023). The Chiefs should consider doing it again to ensure they have enough depth at WR.