{"id":855389,"date":"2026-04-05T16:38:25","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T16:38:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/855389\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T16:38:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T16:38:25","slug":"3-immediate-observations-after-nfls-ruling-on-chiefs-rice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/855389\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Immediate Observations After NFL\u2019s Ruling on Chiefs\u2019 Rice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"inline-text-0\" class=\"mt-[18px] md:mt-0 mb-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6g\">KANSAS CITY, Mo. \u2013 There were no victory laps in Kansas City Friday when the NFL finalized its investigation with regard to Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-1\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6j\">\u201cThere was insufficient evidence to support a finding that he violated the personal conduct policy,\u201d chief spokesman Brian McCarthy told OnSI Friday.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">NFL concluded today that Chiefs WR Rashee Rice \u201chas not engaged in conduct that violates the personal conduct policy\u201d and the investigation into accusations from his former girlfriend is now closed; there will be no discipline at this time.<\/p>\n<p>Statement from his attorney Sean\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/fwQKFTEDxd\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/fwQKFTEDxd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AdamSchefter\/status\/2040170010627227717?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">April 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-3\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6p\">So, what does the Rice news mean for the Chiefs moving forward as they now look ahead tlo the 2026 NFL Draft with a key answer at WR?<\/p>\n<p>Potentially Rice\u2019s first full season since 2023<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6v\">He sustained a brutal knee injury while ironically pursuing future teammate Kristian Fulton after a Week 4 interception at SoFi Stadium in 2024. Then, after pleading guilty last July to two third-degree felonies for his role in a 2024 Dallas-area car crash, the NFL suspended Rice for the first six games of the 2025 season.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"6y\">A second suspension as a repeat offender under the NFL\u2019s policy would\u2019ve been longer, possibly the entire 2026 season. But the league\u2019s ruling on Friday removes that possibility. Rice enters the final year of his four-year rookie contract.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/01kncd6g6jbb1y25j2g3.jpg\" alt=\"ric\" title=\"ric\" width=\"1434\" height=\"806\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"78\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Dec 25, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs (39) breaks up a pass intended for Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (4) during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p>Confidence in availability of personnel on roster<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-9\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7f\">Now, Brett Veach can focus on the draft with confidence in the availability of players on his existing roster. Andy Reid, Eric Bieniemy and new wide receivers coach Chad O\u2019Shea know they\u2019ll have Rice this season and can move forward with their offseason installations.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-10\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7i\">Rice, who marks his 26th birthday the day before the April 23 draft, entered the league in 2023 as the Chiefs\u2019 second-round selection (55th overall). <\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-11\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"7l\">Kansas City owns nine picks in this month&#8217;s draft, including two in the first round on Night 1.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/01kncd9kx3sqs3fr5ceb.jpg\" alt=\"worthy, ric\" title=\"worthy, ric\" width=\"4487\" height=\"2523\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"7v\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Sep 5, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) celebrates with quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) and wide receiver Rashee Rice (4) after scoring a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens during the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p>Chiefs can install with league\u2019s most efficient wideout<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-14\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"82\">Last season, in between the six-game suspension and when he landed on season-ending injured reserve with a concussion, Rice was a dependable and explosive target for Patrick Mahomes. Despite playing just eight games, Rice was second on the team with 53 catches and third with 571 receiving yards. His <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/nfl\/chiefs\/onsi\/kansas-city-rashee-rice-hollywood-brown-patrick-mahomes\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">five touchdown receptions<\/a> tied Travis Kelce and Hollywood Brown for the Chiefs\u2019 lead.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-15\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\" q:key=\"0\" q:id=\"85\">But what Rice did after getting the ball in his hands made him most effective. He averaged 8.0 yards after the catch per reception, first among NFL wide receivers with at least 50 catches. Rice also finished fifth behind Bijan Robinson (10.8), Ashton Jeanty (8.4), De\u2019Von Achane (8.3) and Jahmyr Gibbs (8.2) \u2013 four running backs &#8212; in that category.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/01kncdbcty3zrcxwdtj6.jpg\" alt=\"ric\" title=\"ric\" width=\"5288\" height=\"2974\" class=\"undefined w-full w-full blur-[5px]\" q:id=\"8f\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Dec 14, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (4) runs for yards after the catch against the Los Angeles Chargers during the first quarter at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KANSAS CITY, Mo. \u2013 There were no victory laps in Kansas City Friday when the NFL finalized its&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":855390,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2063],"tags":[346,7,118,110,2438,2437,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-855389","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kansas-city-chiefs","8":"tag-chiefs","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-kansas-city","11":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","12":"tag-kansascity","13":"tag-kansascitychiefs","14":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116353090912815161","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/855389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=855389"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/855389\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/855390"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=855389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=855389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=855389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}