Who will replace Chiefs running back Rashee Rice who faces season-ending surgery?
The Chiefs are facing a major blow with the potential loss of their star receiver and while it’s been coming, there is still the question of his replacement.
As much as the reigning Super Bowl champions are still undefeated at 5-0, the likely loss of their top wide receiver is going to hurt. With that, the team now faces the question of how it will compensate and by the looks of things, it’s going to be a group effort.
Rashee Rice’s season looks set to end early
While there are details to be clarified, reports confirm that Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice will undergo surgery on Tuesday to repair the LCL in his right knee. To that end, doctors have indicated that while it’s not certain, the Chiefs’ top wideout is facing the end of his season.
On a positive note, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported on Monday that there was some good news for Rice in that doctors revealed that the damage to his knee wasn’t as bad as initially feared. In light of that, it may be that the 24-year-old only requires reparation of the LCL itself which would make his recovery process much smoother. Conversely, other reports have indicated that doctors won’t know the extent of what must be done until they perform the surgery itself.
It goes without saying this is less than ideal for the Chiefs who are already without fellow wideout, Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. In his rookie season just last year, Rice caught 79 passes for 938 yards and seven touchdowns. He then added a further 26 catches for 262 yards and a touchdown in the playoffs as the Chiefs marched to a second consecutive Super Bowl title. This is all to say that as much as the Chiefs can take comfort in the idea that Rice’s problem doesn’t seem to be as severe as first thought, the loss of his contribution poses a significant problem. To be clear, Rice is now the No. 1 receiver and that is plain to see in the numbers that he’s racked up with quarterback Patrick Mahomes, hauling in 24 catches for 288 yards and two touchdowns in the four games that he’s played this season.
What that means is that the Chiefs now have a hole to fill. Assuming Rice doesn’t return to the field this season, expect to see the team turning to tight end Travis Kelce, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Justin Watson, and rookie Xavier Worthy, all of whom have had their struggles at differing times this season. Again, the Chiefs are currently sitting pretty in the AFC with an unblemished record but it stands to reason that things are about to get a little more complicated.