After a sluggish start to the 2025 slate, the Chiefs appear to be rounding into form. They have won three of their last four contests, and since wideout Xavier Worthy returned to the field in Week 4 – the second-year pro had been sidelined since the first quarter of the regular season opener due to a shoulder injury – they are averaging over 31 points per game.
The offense will get another jolt on Sunday, when Rashee Rice will make his 2025 debut (as relayed by ESPN’s Nate Taylor). Kansas City’s top wide receiver served a six-game suspension to open the season due to his involvement in a hit-and-run in March 2024, along with accusations of punching a photographer and another incident during his time as a collegian at SMU in which he or a member of his party fired gunshots into an empty vehicle belonging to an SMU basketball player.
The criminal portion of the hit-and-run matter concluded in July – as part of a plea deal, Rice received five years of probation and deferred adjudication on a 30-day jail sentence – and he and the league ultimately agreed to the six-game ban. He will be eligible for a second contract after the season, so he will now have the opportunity to bolster his future earning power while helping KC make another deep postseason run.
However, he may not enjoy a full workload right away, as head coach Andy Reid implied in advance of his team’s Week 7 tilt with the Raiders.
“How many snaps he gets, [I don’t know],” Reid said (via Taylor). “He’s excited to be back in and going. I think getting through practices [this week] will be good for him to get into the swing of things. He’s been working hard. He’s in good shape. … There’s one ball, and somebody isn’t going to get every snap. They got to check that ego and I appreciate that.”
Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network hears there is an air of selflessness and excitement in Kansas City’s wide receivers room at the moment. And while the coaching staff will indeed monitor Rice’s snap count in Week 7, Garafolo says the 25-year-old is expected to play “a bunch” (video link).
Per Taylor, the Chiefs believe Rice will begin to look like his usual self sooner rather than later. Over the course of his suspension, Rice has been doing individual workouts in which he has focused on his route running, strength and conditioning, and quickness.
As Taylor also points out, Sunday will mark the first time that Rice, Worthy, and Marquise Brown – who joined the club in free agency in 2024 and who re-upped this offseason – will all be active in the same game.