Rashee Rice Leaves with Knee Injury After Being Hit by Patrick Mahomes

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice was carted off the field with a knee injury suffered after being hit by Patrick Mahomes.

Jan 13, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) celebrates with wide receiver Rashee Rice (4) during the first half of a 2024 AFC wild card game against the Miami Dolphins at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice was carted to the locker room during the first quarter of Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Chargers following a collision with quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

Rice, who had a towel over his face while laying in the back of the injury cart, made it to the sideline following his injury before being carted off a short time later.

After Mahomes threw an interception to Chargers defensive back Kristian Fulton, Rice pursued Fulton and punched the ball loose, forcing a fumble. As Mahomes also attempted to make a tackle, his shoulder impacted Rice's knee, bending Rice's leg awkwardly.

Mahomes injures Rashee Rice on this interception... #KCvsLAC pic.twitter.com/3rIf4KMGtx

— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) September 29, 2024

The Chiefs initially ruled Rice "questionable to return" with a knee injury before downgrading him and officially ruling him out less than 10 minutes later.

In a halftime on-field interview with Tracy Wolfson on CBS, Wolfson asked Reid if he could share any more information about Rice's status.

"No, but it's not good," Reid said.

Andy Reid with some ominous words on the status of Rashee Rice | @tracywolfson pic.twitter.com/Rr1ewldI8e

— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 29, 2024

What could Rice's injury mean for the Chiefs?

Here's what Jordan Foote of Kansas City Chiefs On SI believes this could mean for KC's offense as the team awaits news regarding its No. 1 receiver:

If Rice misses any serious period of time, the Chiefs' offense is suddenly in a very dangerous spot. The unit runs through him, as evidenced by his targets (29), receptions (24) and yardage (288) marks that all ranked near the top of the sport entering Sunday's game. Not only does Rice going down put a lot more pressure on Travis Kelce (who the jury is still out on), but it leaves a group already missing Marquise "Hollywood" Brown in desperation. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Justin Watson and Mecole Hardman all fill different roles and are trusted veterans, but it's hard to see Kansas City successfully replacing Rice's production in the aggregate. His situation is absolutely worth monitoring, as the fate of the season could depend on how serious his injury is.

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