Packers claim Jerry Rice’s son on waivers

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Los Angeles, CA - September 03: Wide receiver Brenden Rice #2 of the USC Trojans prior to a NCAA football game between the USC Trojans and the Rice Owls at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles on Saturday, September 3, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images) | MediaNews Group via Getty Images

The Green Bay Packers continue to change up their offseason roster this week. Previously, the team added tight end Luke Lachey and cornerback M.J. Devonshire off waivers. On Wednesday, the Packers were awarded receiver Brenden Rice, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, from the Las Vegas Raiders.

Rice originally enrolled at Colorado in 2020 before transferring to USC in 2022. In each of his final two years of college ball, he cracked 600 receiving yards — along with 11 receiving touchdowns in the 2023 season. At the combine in 2024, he was measured at over 6’2” and 208 pounds.

Brenden Rice was drafted in round 7 pick 225 in the 2024 draft class. He scored a 7.17 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 964 out of 3402 WR from 1987 to 2024. https://t.co/5mIBeiGzUapic.twitter.com/LfJpB6hn6v

— RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 27, 2024

Rice was picked by the Los Angeles Chargers in the seventh round of the 2024 draft, but didn’t make the team in 2025 after playing three games as a rookie. He was later signed to the New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks and Raiders practice squads last season.

For his NFL career, Rice has played in three regular-season games, totaling three offensive snaps and 10 special teams reps, all of which came in 2024 with the Chargers.

Rice joins a receiver room with Christian Watson, Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, Savion Williams, Bo Melton, Skyy Moore, J. Michael Sturdivant, Will Sheppard, Jakobie Keeney-James and Isaiah Neyor.

Green Bay’s roster was full before the move, so they waived defensive tackle James Ester, who originally signed with the Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2024 and was a member of the team’s practice squad for the entirety of the last two seasons, to make room for the addition of Rice.

Here is how The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, who had Rice ranked as the 103rd overall player in the 2024 class, saw Rice when coming out of USC:

Understandably, it’s hard living up to the expectations of being Jerry Rice’s son (especially for a young receiver), but he became more and more comfortable in his own skin over the years — and his Hall-of-Fame bloodlines are an obvious plus. He was a frequent visitor to the end zone in 2023 (caught a touchdown every 3.75 catches), and his budding route athleticism made him a weapon on tape (80.0 percent of his catches resulted in a first down or touchdown).

Though he is efficient in/out of breaks, his separation skills are average at best, and he struggled to consistently win crowded catch points. Overall, Rice must continue working on the finer points to beat press coverage and get open versus NFL corners, but he has the size/speed athleticism and hand-eye coordination to become a better pro than he was a college player. He projects as a backup X/Z receiver with down-the-road starting potential.

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