ANDY REID AND PATRICK MAHOMES LIKE WHAT THEY SEE FROM RASHEE RICE IN YEAR 2

The Kansas City Chiefs made a concerted effort this offseason to revamp their wide receiving corps, a unit that struggled with consistency throughout last year.

While rookie sensation Xavier Worthy grabbed all of the attention with a dazzling two-touchdown debut in Week 1, second-year receiver Rashee Rice quietly built on his rookie season with a strong performance of his own. Rice delivered critical plays in the Chiefs’ 27-20 victory over the Baltimore Ravens, making it clear he’s primed for a breakout season.

“He (Rashee Rice) was more comfortable than he was last year, which makes sense, just having had the reps and experience,” head coach Andy Reid told reporters on Wednesday. “The one thing that he does well is he catches it, and he gets himself upfield. He’s a good, consistent catcher, works himself upfield (and) is tough – plays physical. [At] the same time, he’s a willing blocker. (He’ll) get in there and mix it up, so he’s really developing his whole game in all areas. He’ll keep rolling but it’s a way smaller margin than what he had to grow from the beginning here last year.”

Rice’s performance in the Chiefs’ home opener was a statement. He hauled in seven catches for 103 yards, leading the team in both receptions and yardage. His nine targets more than doubled the next-highest receiver on the team (Travis Kelce with four targets), cementing Rice as one of quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ most trusted options early in the season.

“I think he’s just gotten better and better,” Mahomes said. “I think throughout training camp, throughout (the) end of last year, he’s gotten to be a more versatile receiver where he can do a lot of different things. We can put him on some read routes, we put him on, obviously, a lot of slant routes (and) stuff like that where he can win one-on-one, and he did that. I think as the season goes on, you’re going to see the full arsenal of routes that he can run. He can run deep routes, he can run intermediate routes, he can run those medium routes. He can do it all.”

Rice’s precise route running and ability to find soft spots in coverage make him an ideal complement to the Chiefs’ new-look receiving corp, which now features the speed of Worthy – and eventually veteran receiver Hollywood Brown. Their ability to take the top off opposing secondaries opens up space underneath where Rice thrives, creating a potentially lethal combination for Kansas City’s passing attack.

“With me taking the top off, that opens up everything underneath for him (Rashee Rice) and Travis (Kelce),” Worthy explained. “So, he took advantage of every opportunity he got.”

With Rice showing this level of growth and chemistry with Mahomes, Kansas City’s offense looks primed for a resurgence. If his Week 1 performance is any indication, Rice’s leap in year two should be one of the keys that unlocks Kansas City’s offensive potential — not just this season, but for years to come.

“Just having all those other weapons around him as well, it takes off the focus on him that you kind of saw at some points last year,” Mahomes noted. ”I think that’s just going to make our offense so great.”

2024-09-12T21:28:37Z