- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,130,794
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images attach
ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 02: Rashee Rice #4 of the Kansas City Chiefs runs with the ball during the first quarter in the game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium on November 02, 2025 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Kansas City Chiefs didn’t invest in wide receivers heavily this offseason. The team re-signed Tyquan Thornton to a modest contract, added nobody in free agency and waited until the fifth round to address the position in the draft. The Chiefs are betting on the development of the team’s young receivers to improve an offense that failed to meet expectations in 2025.
Let’s take a step back from current headlines and review the on-field performance of Kansas City’s projected top wideout in 2026: Rashee Rice.
What went well for Rice
Rice is at his best with the ball in his hands, and the Chiefs have spent the last two seasons finding any way to get him the ball in space. The Chiefs will use screens, motion, or put Rice in the backfield to get him into space with blocking.
Getting the ball to Rice in space serves as a functional floor to the offense, as they often turn into first downs that keep the offense moving. Having Rice play as a quasi-running back helped mitigate a run game that was poor at yielding explosive chunks.
Rice has always had an innate feel for underneath zone coverages. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Rice have dialed in their chemistry to the point where the quarterback immediately targets him in short areas, trusting that the wideout will instantly recognize the space and turn to the ball.
Rice finding these soft spots allows him to immediately get north and break tackles. When a defense is shifting and not in position to tackle Rice, he is at his most dangerous. Defenses have to be aware of where he is and not allow Rice to find open zones vs. a linebacker.
One area that Rice has improved over his career is being able to set up his routes vs. linebackers in zone coverage and getting behind them. The second clip is a great example of this. Instead of crossing the face of the linebacker, Rice cut upfield behind the peripheral vision of the linebacker. The linebacker was nowhere in position to drift into the passing lane, giving Rice space to get 40 yards.
Rice can be inconsistent in the scramble drill with Patrick Mahomes, but he has improved at it over the years. If Rice can get a defensive back to trail far behind him on the scramble drill, that can create opportunities to make one guy miss and have plenty of space to attack a defense that is scrambled.
Rice needs to continue to improve finding ways to create separation late into the down. If he can improve there, he can earn more yards when Mahomes goes into creation mode.
Rice struggles to beat man coverage, but the downside of playing man coverage against him is that you’re risking having defenders with vision to tackle him in space. This play is a perfect example. Rice uses his body to box out the slot defender, giving Mahomes a window to hit him inside. The defender is caught behind trying to make a play on the ball. Rice gets north and only had one safety to beat, who is at a bad angle to tackle Rice.
Where Rice struggled
Rice hasn’t developed his release package since coming to the NFL. He doesn’t do a good job setting up his defender with his feet. Rice’s main way of trying to beat press coverage is to use his body to create space, but Rice doesn’t have the size or length to overwhelm NFL cornerbacks.
The third clip is a perfect example of Rice’s limitations as an outside receiver. Rice is running a Dig route, but he does nothing to sell the route at the line of scrimmage. Ideally, Rice would use an outside release to get the defender to open their hips to the sideline, but he never does that. Rice cuts far inside, which allows the defender to open inside and easily trail him on the dig.
Rice’s lack of setup on his routes extends downfield as well. Rice is an explosive athlete, but he’s also stiff and struggles to sink his hips and change directions. The Chiefs use Rice on corner routes where he will try to sell the over route and cut outside. Rice struggles on these routes because he can’t sink and explode outside.
Rice also doesn’t do a good job selling a vertical route from the slot. This could be defensive coaches scouting and knowing his route tree, but defenders in the slot never open their hips fully to run upfield against Rice. Defenders know that most of Rice’s route tree happens within 10 yards, so there isn’t a fear of him running a vertical route.
This makes it even harder for Rice to separate on his underneath routes vs. man coverage. Combine that with his lack of route setup with his feet and his lack of agility, and Rice doesn’t have many counters to beat man coverage.
Rice was good in contested catch situations at SMU, but none of that skill has translated to the NFL. Rice likes to use his body to try and create separation, but it doesn’t go well for him. He lacks the size or length to discard defenders and create separation with his body.
Because Rice doesn’t create separation with his upper body in these situations, he needs to be able to get in the air to make catches, but he never does this. Rice doesn’t like to jump to get the ball, which makes it even harder for Mahomes to throw him the ball in traffic. The throwing window to Rice in contested catch situations is so small, it’s hardly worth even trying to use him in that way.
The Bottom Line
Rice is a frustrating player. His strengths are overwhelming. He’s excellent with the ball in his hands and has a great feel for zone coverages. Within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, Rice can be one of the more impactful wide receivers in the NFL with his feel for space and explosiveness.
However, Rice’s weaknesses also frequently surface. He can’t play on the boundary because he doesn’t have a release package. He doesn’t sell vertical routes enough from the slot, which makes it easier for defenders to know what route is coming. His hips are stiff and he struggles to sink on routes. He struggles to catch in traffic.
Rice’s niche skillset is valuable, but he limits an offense schematically because he can only play in the slot and run certain routes. That being said, the Chiefs don’t have anyone else that they can justify giving heavy targets to. His role on the team is still very important, and the Chiefs have to maximize what he provides the team. Hopefully, Rice can iron out a few weaknesses to add versatility to the passing offense.
Continue reading...
