It’s tough to imagine things going much worse for the Chiefs than they did during the 2025 campaign. The Denver Broncos knocked them off the top of the AFC West mountain for the first time in nine seasons, and they failed to reach the playoffs for the first time in the Mahomes era.

Making matters worse, Mahomes went down with an ACL injury late in the campaign, which may affect his availability at the start of the 2026 season. There’s no telling what level Mahomes will be at when he returns, and perhaps not-so-coincidentally, Kansas City restructured his contract to provide some flexibility to add more talent around him next season.

“The Kansas City Chiefs restructured Patrick Mahomes’ contract this week, lowering his salary cap number from $78.2 to $34.65 million for the upcoming season and creating $43.56 million in salary cap space,” ESPN’s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter tweeted.

However, the Chiefs may have to add more talent than they originally anticipated in light of a troubling report.

“Rashee Rice’s longtime GF and mom of his two kids filed an explosive lawsuit against the NFL star, accusing him of choking, strangling, scratching, hitting, and headbutting her over a nightmare 19-month period,” TMZ reported.

Rashee Rice’s longtime GF and mom of his two kids filed an explosive lawsuit against the NFL star, accusing him of choking, strangling, scratching, hitting, and headbutting her over a nightmare 19-month period.

Read more: https://t.co/01knfG6zZe pic.twitter.com/oRgm7jCP4y

— TMZ (@TMZ) February 19, 2026

Depending on how the lawsuit plays out, Rice may receive a suspension, or the Chiefs may just decide to move on from the receiver himself. Fans reacted to the news on social media.

“If there’s truth to any of these allegations the Chiefs need to cut him on the spot and move on,” one person wrote on Twitter.

“If proven true, this kid could be done in the NFL sooner than later,’ someone else added.

“So ready to be done with this guy. Chiefs need to bring in a decent human for the WR room like Tyreek Hill. Sick of this,” another fan added.

It’ll be interesting to see how the league and the Chiefs proceed.