KC Chiefs ‘Like the Path’ Rookie WR Rashee Rice Is On

Ten games into Rice's rookie campaign, offensive coordinator Matt Nagy provided a progress report on the second-round pick.

Earlier this year, the Kansas City Chiefs described rookie wide receiver Rashee Rice as "drinking from a firehose" in terms of absorbing head coach Andy Reid's complex playbook. That, combined with the track record for rookies in Reid's offenses in the past, didn't inspire many with the confidence to believe the SMU product would be a difference-maker right off the bat.

Ten games into the 2023-24 season, though, it's the second-round pick who leads all Kansas City wideouts in targets (46), receptions (36), yards (420), first downs (21) and touchdowns (4). His yards per target of 9.1 trails only Marquez Valdes-Scantling on the team. Rice is Pro Football Focus' third-highest-graded rookie in the database. Of that same group, he also ranks third in yards per route run at 2.19. 

Earlier in the year, it was very clear that the Chiefs were finding specific times to put Rice on the field. The team unleashed him in scenarios that suited his understanding of the offense and what he could handle at the time. He got described by some as more of a package player because of that, but that tag may not be following him anymore. On Tuesday, offensive coordinator Matt Nagy praised Rice for his progress and said he's trusted to do many things in the offense now. 

“Not necessarily, I think he’s done a good job of being able to show us that he can do more," Nagy said. "(He’s) taking the time throughout the week to understand certain route concepts. We know what he can do with the football in his hands. We saw that yesterday a few times, he’s a physical runner, he has strong hands. Now I think you’re noticing that some of his snaps are going up slightly as far as his percentages of snaps. We want to continue to do that, that’s part of development and the trust factor – which is real. The more we can get at that, the better we will be because he’s a very good football player. You’re right he is growing, but it will be in increments, and we like the path he is on right now.”

Using PFF's tracking, Rice compares quite favorably to the rest of the Chiefs' current wide receiver group. Not only does he have a commanding lead in yards after catch, but his YAC average is also tops on the team. The aforementioned Y/RR metric is over a half-yard more than Justin Watson. When targeting Rice, quarterback Patrick Mahomes has a 125.9 passer rating. The next-closest Chief? Valdes-Scantling at 83.8. With all of that said, Rice is far from perfect:

The clear drops are obviously bad, but here are a handful of plays where the Chiefs WRs just don't know when to sit in zone, when the ball is being snapped, or how to run a route in a straight line.

I think this is why Rice doesn't play more. pic.twitter.com/pHMFXs3X5s

— Hayden Winks (@HaydenWinks) November 21, 2023

Ironic relative to the above tweet, an overwhelming amount of Rice's success comes against zone coverage. He averages 3.54 Y/RR versus zone, but that number drops all the way down to a team-low 0.68 in man-to-man assignments. He still has a long way to go before developing into a full-fledged leading target for an NFL team. On the other hand, he technically is a leading target as a rookie despite his developmental arc being far from finished.

Rice's involvement in the Chiefs' offense may not be changing a whole lot from a production standpoint, but his snap counts are telling. Dating back to Week 7, his lowest number of snaps played was 37 in a loss to the Denver Broncos. That total was still good for 61% of available reps, so Kansas City is giving the young receiver chances to prove that he can stick in just about any situation. Nagy is a fan of his advancement, and it's possible that there's even more in store for a player who is still growing as a boundary wideout. For someone taken at No. 55 overall in the draft less than seven months ago, Rice is off to a more than solid start. 

Matt Nagy Backs Marquez Valdes-Scantling After Week 11 Drop