Rashee Rice film review: Meet the Chiefs' new wide receiver

Examining Rice's skillset and potential fit in Kansas City's offense. There's a clear path for the physical WR.

It was considered likely that Brett Veach and the Chiefs would go after a wide receiver in this draft. After all, the wide receiver room is in such a state that I’ve written multiple times about potential trade options or just wondering aloud what exactly the thought process is.

Well, we now know at least partly what the thought process is, as the Chiefs traded up in the 2nd round to grab Rashee Rice of SMU. Interestingly enough, Rice was among the receivers (including Quentin Johnston and Zay Flowers) who worked out with Patrick Mahomes in Texas recently. His workout, unlike the first two, didn’t make its way to the media (at least anywhere that I saw), which likely says something about the Chiefs’ level of interest in him.

Rice is an interesting pick for the Chiefs given his particular physical makeup.

(RAS numbers courtesy of Kent Platte, who deserves a follow on Twitter)

Rather than one of the smaller, quicker receivers (which is a type the Chiefs have at times favored), Reid and company (I’d assume with Mahomes’ blessing) went with the bigger-bodied Rice, a player who isn’t considered a burner or a waterbug-type player.

So what does Rice’s film show? Where does he win, where does he need work, and how does he fit into KC this year and beyond? To find out, I looked at multiple games from Rice utilizing the same process I used to look at Johnston, JSN, and other wide receivers in this draft.

You can find a detailed breakdown of the methodology here (the Johnston review, which is unlocked), but the basics are as follows… I look at every snap (not just targets) focusing on traits I think are important to success at the next level: Speed/acceleration/agility, release (getting off the line), route running, hands and strength at the catch point, and YAC ability/playmaking. I then give an overall impression of fit.

Let’s talk about Rice’s film, which is quite different from Flowers or Johnston (players I liked), and then discuss his path towards success in Kansas City. It’s a path that I think was blazed by how the offense was structured last season.