This offseason has been one filled with legal troubles for Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice.
Rice is facing a total of eight felony charges stemming from a hit-and-run incident in Dallas on the evening of March 30, an incident in which he and another driver were believed to be street racing (with Rice allegedly reaching a speed of 119 mph). About a month later, Rice was accused of punching a photographer at a Dallas nightclub.
During his meeting with police about the hit-and-run matter, Rice reportedly accepted “full responsibility” for his role, and his attorney later indicated that his client intends to cover the expenses of the victims, though Rice is being sued for over $1M in actual damages and $10M in punitive damages by two of those victims.
The photographer that Rice allegedly struck subsequently asked police to not file charges against the second-year wideout, and the investigation was reportedly closed shortly thereafter.
While it seems as though Rice will not face charges for his encounter with the photographer, that incident could nonetheless impact the suspension that the Chiefs expect the NFL to hand down at some point.
The league may wait until the hit-and-run legal process plays out before issuing sanctions, but once that happens, the alleged assault — as well as an incident that took place while Rice was still in college in which the then-SMU player or a member of his party fired shots into an empty vehicle belonging to a member of the school’s basketball team — may well factor into the punishment.
In the meantime, Rice is free to take part in all team activities, and he was a full participant in the Chiefs’ OTAs. On Saturday, he participated in a youth football camp in Kansas City alongside a number of the team’s other top receivers, and he offered his first public comments on his situation (via ESPN).
“I’ve learned so much from [the hit-and-run],” Rice said. “All I can do is mature and continue to grow from that. This (the youth football camp) is a step in a better direction for me.”
While vowing to improve as a person, Rice added, “[a]ccidents and stuff like that happen, but all you can do is move forward and walk around being the same person, try to be positive so that everybody can feel your love and your great energy.”
As a rookie in 2023, Rice was the Chiefs’ most effective wide receiver, and whenever his seemingly inevitable suspension is levied, KC will feel his absence.
The team did address its WR corps in a meaningful way this offseason, adding Marquise Brown in free agency and another speed merchant, Xavier Worthy, in the first round of the 2024 draft. The club recently agreed to a re-up with Mecole Hardman and is still rostering Justin Watson, Skyy Moore and Kadarius Toney.
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