Rashee Rice on long-awaited Chiefs return: “The time’s finally here”

For the first time in 13 months, Rashee Rice will take to the field in an NFL game.

The Kansas City Chiefs have been without the receiver since September 2024, when he suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 4. He was then hit with a six-game NFL suspension for his part in a high-speed crash in March 2024, ruling him out for the start of the 2025 season.

The terms of Rice’s suspension prevented him from even entering the team facility until three weeks ago, and he was only permitted to take part in practice sessions this week. Now fully integrated back into the team, Rice wants to make up for lost time.

“It’s been a long time coming," Rice told reporters on Friday. “Not only do I love the game of football, but I was able to realize how strong I am mentally... Being able to face a lot of adversity at the time.”

Rice’s return will be a major boost for the Chiefs as they look to build on a positive run of form over recent weeks. After losing the first two games of the 2025 season the Chiefs have bounced back to take their record to 3-3, most recently picking up an impressive 17-30 win over the Detroit Lions.

Speaking on Friday, head coach Andy Reid revealed that Rice had impressed at practice despite a prolonged spell away from the team: “Yeah, I mean, he looks sharp. It’s not a game. But what we asked him to do, he did well.

“And one thing he is, you can tell, he’s in good shape. That’s always your worry when somebody misses a few weeks, because it’s different when you’re playing. But he busted his tail. Did a nice job there,” Reid added.

“Now it’s just a matter of getting in the game and getting reps there, you know. So, we’ll see. See how all that goes.”

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