After Rashee Rice‘s spate of legal trouble this offseason, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid addressed what the team knew about the former SMU star before drafting him in 2023. Even before Rice was involved in a multi-car crash in Dallas and an incident at a Dallas club this summer, reports claim the second-round pick fired bullets into an empty car belonging to SMU’s Kendric Davis while at the university due to a personal beef with the basketball player.
Per Mike Florio, the Chiefs knew of the alleged incident before taking him with the No. 55 overall pick last year. Reid was tight-lipped about the young receiver, but said the team “knew enough.”
“The way I’d leave it with you is we knew enough to draft him,” Reid said. “We just went with the process and we found that it was satisfactory for us.”
The Kansas City Chiefs have Rice back in the building this month for OTAs and minicamp after his trouble-filled offseason. Despite facing a potential suspension from the league following his arrest for a reckless driving incident, the second-year player is gearing up for his second season in the NFL as usual.
At the end of March, Rice was one of two drivers that caused a multi-car crash on a Dallas highway. The Chiefs star was traveling at 119 miles per hour before losing control and crashing. The crash resulted in injuries to several other drivers and passengers and has led to a $1 million lawsuit against him and fellow driver Theodore Knox.
Chiefs bolster WR room in anticipation of Rice suspension
The Chiefs, anticipating a suspension for Rice to start the 2024 season, drafted former Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy in the first round of the draft. According to NFL insider Adam Schefter, the former SMU standout will likely be out multiple games. Kansas City begins the season against the Baltimore Ravens, then has Cincinnati, Atlanta and Los Angeles (Chargers) on the schedule through the first four weeks.
“Let’s start with, obviously, there are major legal ramifications that he’s going to have to go through here,” Schefter said, “and we’ll see what the court system plays out [and] how the process plays itself out. But from an NFL standpoint, there’s the very real possibility that at this point in time, Rashee Rice is going to be facing discipline from the NFL, a multi-game suspension.”
In his first season in the league, Rice accumulated 79 receptions, 938 yards and seven touchdowns in the regular season. He added another 26 catches, 262 yards and one touchdown on the way to his first Super Bowl victory.
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