After having surgery to fix his right LCL on Tuesday, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) is expected to be out for four months, according to multiple sources. It was a best-case scenario for Rice, who will miss the rest of the 2024 season, but the good news is he's expected to make a full recovery. In addition to his knee, Rice also had a hamstring tendon repaired on Tuesday. Barring any setbacks for the 24-year-old during his rehab, he should be ready to go for the start of the 2025 season next fall. With receiver Marquise Brown (shoulder) already out for the year and running back Isiah Pacheco (leg) on Injured Reserve, the Chiefs have lost their best playmakers outside of quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce. Fantasy managers in single-year leagues can obviously drop Rice at this time and look for a replacement.
Rashee Rice Has Surgery, Officially Out For The Season
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) will miss the rest of the 2024 NFL season after undergoing successful surgery on Tuesday. The second-year wide receiver suffered the injury early in the Week 4 win over the Los Angeles Chargers after taking a hit to the knee from Patrick Mahomes trying to make a tackle following an interception. While the star wide receiver will miss the rest of the season, he is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the start of next year. Rice suffered no damage to his ACL or meniscus, which many thought could have been torn last week. The Chiefs will likely add a wide receiver before the NFL trade deadline in a few weeks. However, Travis Kelce and JuJu Smith-Schuster will see more targets and fantasy value with Rice done for the year.
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) is expected to miss the rest of the 2024 season, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. Rapoport noted that Rice will need his LCL repaired, not his ACL. This is a positive sign for his outlook, as he will not need a significant operation on his ACL, which would have kept him sidelined for a longer period of time. Rice continued his breakout rookie campaign through the first three weeks of this season, averaging eight receptions with 96 yards in each game with two total scores. As a result, the Chiefs will need to find a replacement option for their top wideout. On Monday evening, veteran JuJu Smith-Schuster saw eight targets and was able to catch seven of them for 130 yards. Tight end Travis Kelce saw a team-high ten targets. Fantasy managers should consider adding Smith-Schuster this week as he could be deployed in Rice's role for the remainder of the season. Kelce should be viewed as a high-end TE1 simply off the volume he should see going forward.
Rashee Rice Receives Good News, Return Still Uncertain
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that while Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice's (knee) season is expected to be over, he received positive news on Monday from Dr. Dan Cooper, according to sources. Rice needs his right LCL to be fixed, but there's a chance that's all he needs fixed, and he's expected to make a full recovery. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports there's "a lot of optimism" that Rice didn't suffer a knee injury as significant as initially believed, according to a source. He will have an arthroscopic procedure on Tuesday to determine the full extent of his knee injury, but the belief now is that it could be a "much shorter" recovery timeline than initially believed. It's unclear if Rice actually has a chance to return this season, but the bottom line is that fantasy managers need to hang onto him for now. The likelihood is still pretty remote that Rice will be able to help fantasy managers when it matters most in the playoffs, but nothing is ruled out just yet.
There remains hopes that Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) could return this season and be sidelined six to eight weeks, according to league sources, but nothing will be determined until early this week once he has a procedure on his injured knee. Once the Chiefs have more clarity on Rice, they can move into action in terms of looking for a trade to help improve their receiving depth in the meantime. A trade makes even more sense with Marquise Brown (shoulder) lost for the year. KC explored signing DeAndre Hopkins in the 2023 offseason before he signed with the Tennessee Titans. Now that he's in the last year of his contract, the Titans could entertain offers for him. The Chiefs aren't expected to trade for Las Vegas Raiders receiver Davante Adams for a number of reasons, but they could reach out to the Jets if they land him to see if they'd be interested in moving one of their other wideouts.
According to Ian Rapoport, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) is scheduled to undergo an arthroscopic knee procedure early this week. Rice is set to meet with heralded knee expert Dr. Dan Cooper to ascertain the extent of damage to his knee and determine whether or not he will be a candidate to play again this year. Currently, there is only a small chance he'll be healthy enough to do so. The second-year wideout went down with a gruesome hyper-extension of his right knee when quarterback Patrick Mahomes attempted to make a tackle after tossing an interception in the team's 17-10 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 4. If the electric pass-catcher cannot play again this season, it would be a massive blow to fantasy managers and the Chiefs' offense as he has quickly evolved into Mahomes' most reliable playmaker. If Kansas City must move on without the 24-year-old, they may still seek veteran help via the trade market. A notable possibility would be Tennessee Titans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, who spoke extensively with the team before signing with Tennessee. For now, expect wide receivers Xavier Worthy and Justin Watson to help pick up the slack in KC's passing attack, along with tight ends Travis Kelce and Noah Gray.
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) was placed on the injured reserve on Thursday afternoon. The sophomore wideout suffered a knee injury last weekend and was initially feared to have torn his ACL. However, the team has yet to confirm the severity of the injury and plans to continue to perform tests to see its extent. This move to the IR will sideline the 24-year-old for at least the next four weeks. Fantasy managers should continue to follow any updates regarding his status for the remainder of the season. Before the injury, Rice continued his strong finish to his rookie season, averaging 21.6 PPR points across the first three weeks. Fantasy managers should expect Xavier Worthy, Justin Watson, and tight end Travis Kelce to see a drastic uptick in targets while Rice remains sidelined.
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) suffered a serious-looking knee injury in the Week 4 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, but the team is still waiting on information about the severity of his injury. This situation is an ongoing development, so fantasy managers will need to be patient. However, Chiefs reporter Pete Sweeney said Rice was spotted in the Chiefs locker room "walking about normally" with no crutches. Again, not much information is known about his ailment, but he was originally feared to have suffered a torn ACL. Hopefully, the fact that he is walking without crutches is a positive sign for his outlook, but this is a "wait and see" situation. In Rice's absence, rookie wideout Xavier Worthy and veterans Justin Watson and JuJu Smith-Schuster are expected to see extra targets. However, tight end Travis Kelce could regain his target hog status.
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said that the team is waiting for swelling to be reduced in wide receiver Rashee Rice's injured right knee, and further tests are scheduled for next week. Rice injured his knee early in the Week 4 win over the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers, and initial fears were that the 24-year-old suffered a season-ending torn ACL. He has already been ruled out for Week 5 against the New Orleans Saints on Monday night, but the team has held off on officially ruling Rice out for the rest of 2024. For the time being, the Chiefs offense is without two of their best playmakers in Rice and running back Isiah Pacheco (leg), making things much more difficult for quarterback Patrick Mahomes. At least this Monday against the Saints, expect him to lean more on rookie Xavier Worthy and tight end Travis Kelce, while wideouts Justin Watson and JuJu Smith-Schuster will also be more involved to help pick up the slack. Rice needs to be stashed in all leagues.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes told reporters on Wednesday that "hopefully we have him back soon" when referring to wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee), who was feared to have torn his ACL in the Week 4 win over the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers. Further testing on Rice's knee earlier this week has offered a glimpse of hope that he didn't suffer a season-ending injury last Sunday. He is currently seeking a second opinion, and his timetable for a return remains unclear. Mahomes isn't exactly a doctor, but fantasy managers in single-year leagues definitely shouldn't drop Rice just yet. Rice leads the team with 24 catches for 288 yards and two touchdowns but will not play on Monday night against the Saints. The Chiefs are expected to spread the ball around more with Rice out, with rookie Xavier Worthy, Justin Watson and JuJu Smith-Schuster expected to be Mahomes' top three wideouts. Tight end Travis Kelce will also have a higher fantasy ceiling.
Rashee Rice
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