Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice will miss at least four games after being placed on injured reserve, the team announced Thursday.
The Chiefs wideout sustained a knee injury in last weekend’s win over the Los Angeles Chargers. It was reportedly initially feared that Rice tore his ACL.
Head coach Andy Reid said the team won’t know the full extent of Rice’s injury until next week, according to ESPN’s Adam Teicher. The receiver is apparently waiting for his swelling to go down before undergoing further tests.
“We’re really hoping that things work out for the best, but let’s just see where it goes and leave it up to the doctors to see,” Reid said.
Rice was spotted walking in the Chiefs’ locker room Thursday, according to The Athletic’s Nate Taylor. He’s expected to see a specialist in Dallas early next week.
The second-year wideout was knocked out of Sunday’s game when quarterback Patrick Mahomes accidentally collided with his knee while attempting to make a tackle after throwing an interception. Rice was then carted to the locker room and ruled out for the remainder of the contest.
“When I saw the replay, I felt like shit that I hit Rashee,” Mahomes said, per Teicher. “I wasn’t really worried about myself. I was worried about his injury and hopefully that it wasn’t as bad as it looked.”
Rice’s injury is another blow to the Chiefs’ receiving corps this season. Free-agent signing Marquise “Hollywood” Brown sustained a shoulder injury and is expected to miss the rest of the regular season.
Travis Kelce, Xavier Worthy, Justin Watson, Skyy Moore, and JuJu Smith-Schuster could all get more targets in Rice’s absence.
Rice leads all Chiefs pass-catchers with 24 catches for 288 yards to go along with two touchdowns. The SMU product was an immediate contributor during his rookie campaign in 2023, leading the team with seven TDs while adding 938 yards on 79 catches.
