KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs receiver Rashee Rice says he’s learned a lot about himself over the past 13 months while not playing in a regular-season game since September 2024.
Rice is set to make his return to the Chiefs’ lineup in Sunday’s home contest against the Las Vegas Raiders following a six-game NFL suspension to start the season for his involvement in a high-speed crash in March 2024.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Rice said Friday in his first media availability since the preseason, “and the time’s finally here.”
Rice, who agreed to the suspension in late August, also suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 4 of the 2024 season, meaning it’s been 13 months since he last played in a meaningful game for the Chiefs.
Rice said in that yearlong span, he learned just how much the game meant to him.
“Not only do I love the game of football, but I was able to realize how strong I am mentally,” Rice said, “being able to face a lot of adversity at the time.”
Rice, 25, was sentenced in July to five years of probation and 30 days in jail after pleading guilty to two third-degree felony charges. Police reports indicated Rice was driving 119 mph in a Lamborghini Urus just before crashing and causing a chain reaction on a Dallas highway. Rice also didn’t check on other victims and fled the scene on foot.
In a statement from his attorney, Royce West, in July, Rice said he’d had “a lot of sleepless nights thinking about the damages my actions caused.”
“I will continue working within my means to make sure that everyone impacted will be made whole,” Rice said in the statement.
As part of the plea agreement with the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office, Rice had to pay restitution to all the victims for their out-of-pocket medical expenses before his plea — an amount that added up to $115,481.91.
On Friday, Rice didn’t reveal any further details about when or where he’d serve his jail time.
“All that stuff will be taken care of,” Rice said. “I’m here to talk about football right now.”
Rice’s six-game suspension was a negotiated settlement with the league. Coming to that, he said, was the top option.
“Honestly, it was a decision that was best for not only me, but for the team, so I can be here right now,” Rice said. “And that decision … all that’s over. So I’m ready.”
Rice was only able to return to team practices earlier this week. Over the last three weeks, he’s been allowed inside the Chiefs’ facility to attend team meetings.
Earlier this year, in a show of support for their suspended teammate, tight end Travis Kelce and receivers Tyquan Thornton, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Hollywood Brown all wore “Free 4” T-shirts during warmups ahead of the team’s Week 2 game versus the Philadelphia Eagles.
“I would tell you, the guys love Rashee, and they feel for him sitting out here. And so I think it’s no more than that,” coach Andy Reid said when asked about the shirts the day after the game. “I just think that those guys, they love the kid and want him to feel part of it in their own way. I really don’t think it’s anything more than that.”
It’s not just the players who are eager to have the team’s true No. 1 receiver back.
Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said Thursday that he loved where Rice was in his football progression.
“I half-get goose bumps just thinking about when he goes out there and what he does to this offense,” Nagy said. “There’s an excitement you have.”
Earlier in the week, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes figured it would be challenging to keep Rice off the field, even following his long absence. Reid, meanwhile, said Rice coming back would complement the team’s speedy wideouts like Xavier Worthy and Brown.
“He’s unique because of his size and ability after the catch to play physical,” Reid said of Rice.
A 2023 second-round pick out of SMU, Rice had 24 catches for 288 yards with two touchdowns in four games last season before suffering his knee injury. He emerged late in 2023 as the Chiefs’ top receiving threat, finishing with 79 catches for 938 yards.
During his time away from the Chiefs, Rice said he’d been training six days a week in Florida to remain in shape. He also watched most of K.C.’s games on TV with his family in Texas.
Rice said Friday it “means everything” to him that he’ll get a chance to play again alongside his close friends in the Chiefs’ receiving room.
“These guys are my brothers,” Rice said. “So not only am I going out here, rocking the No. 4, being able to ball out, but I get to do it with people that enjoy doing the same thing I do.”