Laci Rice is a rookie who could save the Hall of Fame trio from a wasted year of their careers.
A year when you have head coach Andy Reid, quarterback Patrick Mahomes, and tight end Travis Kelce all together and not competing for a Super Bowl ring is a dynasty destroyer — and the Chiefs have been for most of this season. They looked like just another playoff team.
It's different when Rice plays like he did Saturday night in the 26-7 AFC wild-card win over the Dolphins and at several other points along the way.
“I can't believe he's new,” Reed said.
As great a scouting job as general manager Brett Veach did in 2017 to identify Mahomes and convince his predecessor to trade up and draft him…and then another in the 2022 draft class. As great a job as he was in turning the Chiefs around by hitting for picks, moving him into a defensive corps…as bad a job as Vici has put together this Chiefs receiving corps.
However, in his playoff debut, Rice recorded eight catches for 130 yards and one touchdown, and although his second score was canceled due to a penalty, he used his hands away from his body even in the frigid -7 degrees Celsius. Except when he made the same play as when he caught the ball smoothly. .
According to NextGenStats, all 12 of his targets were in off-coverage, resulting in 80 yards after the catch.
“He just keeps working. He's relentless about it,” Reid said. “He's respected by Pat.”
Why did we need him?
Super Bowl star Kadarius Toney missed more games due to a lengthy injury history.
Kelce dropped two passes in the first half and had another high fastball thrown off his hands, continuing his worst season in his prime.
Mecole Hardman retired on the route for a pass interference penalty that should have been called but was not.
To make matters worse, on Saturday Tyreek Hill, the NFL's most dynamic weapon and Mahomes' go-to guy from 2018 to 2021, broke a tackle and shook off pass interference for a 53-yard touchdown catch. The Dolphins tied the game within 10 points. 7.
A year ago, the Chiefs proved they could win the Super Bowl without Hill as Kelce was in great shape and one-year rental veteran JuJu Smith-Schuster was a viable No. 2 option. For the Chiefs to have a chance to repeat, they may have to make a trip to the playoffs next week for the first time in the Mahomes era and ask Rice to continue filling the roles of Smith and Shuster.
“We have a lot of games to play right now,” Rice said on Chiefs' Rewind. “It’s great for the team to get this out of the way and move forward.”
The Chiefs did not sign DeAndre Hopkins or Odell Beckham Jr. in free agency this offseason, nor did they make any bold trades for Mike Evans or Davante Adams before the Oct. 31 deadline. Instead, they assembled a cast of pass catchers that totaled a league-high 44 drops and frustrated Mahomes and Reid.
The Chiefs weren't like the Chiefs.
Except for the moment when Rice was accelerating across the face of a limping linebacker on a crossing route for the game-opening touchdown.
“Trav understood the whole concept and he got in the way of my defender and his defender,” Rice said. “I caught the ball, and the grass was greener from there.”
Or when Rice gained 39 yards for a third-and-10, setting up a field goal that turned a one-score game into a two-score game.
“Some of these guys hit the rookie wall, and it looks like he just hit that wall,” Mahomes said. “He made a lot of great plays and helped us win games.”
Rice is the seventh wide receiver taken in the 2023 draft (55th overall) with more catches (79) and more yards (938) than any other six players other than record-setting fifth-rounder Puka. gained yards). Nacua (Rams).
So it's no wonder the home crowd held their breath when Rice limped out of the game in the third quarter after clumsily hitting his ankle on the icy turf. And it's no wonder Rice breathed a sigh of relief when he returned with his final catch, breaking the franchise's 53-year-old rookie record for yards in a playoff game.
Rice is the X-factor that could extend the Chiefs' championship run, or the jeweler who could add to the third Super Bowl ring for Reid, Mahomes and Kelce.
