LAS VEGAS — Laci Rice’s rookie season started with vomiting and ended with partying.
Rice made two big catches on Sunday’s overtime touchdown drive to help the Chiefs come back from a 10-point deficit to beat the 49ers 25-22 in the 2024 Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium. .
He had six catches for 39 yards and two carries for five yards, capping a season in which he emerged as Patrick Mahomes’ No. 2 option behind Travis Kelce.
“I threw up on the first day of training camp and now I know why,” Rice said. “We just have to keep running into that deep water until we can’t run anymore. It’s like a heavyweight match and the last one standing wins.”
When the 49ers needed one more stop to become champions, Rice was there to prevent that from happening.
A 6-yard catch on second-and-7 was the biggest play to move the chains for the first time on the final drive, and a 13-yard catch to convert on third-and-6 moved the ball to midfield.
“The rookie wide receiver comes in and just throws the ball,” safety Justin Reed said. “I watched him in training camp and always tried to encourage him, ‘Keep being a dog.’ I saw that this year. He exceeded my expectations as well.”
In a year when the Chiefs’ receivers were plagued with drops, Rice was a big hit throughout the playoffs.
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And when he needed help, a first-half fumble caused the ball to fly out of his arms, but he picked it up when teammate Justin Watson caught it.
It would have taken more than one loose ball for Mahomes to lose the trust he had built in Rice.
“That’s probably the biggest emotion in football,” Rice said. “My job is to catch every pass that Pat throws at me. If he has confidence in me, we’ll have confidence in each other and we’ll be able to execute the plays we need to make.”
As confetti rained down, Rice buried his head in head coach Andy Reid’s shoulder and gave him a big hug.
“On an internal note…last year, I was just watching the Super Bowl and I didn’t realize how long it took to get to this point,” Rice said. “The last time I won something like this was pee-pee soccer. I was 11 years old and won the ‘Super Bowl.’ ”
Now he had a taste of the real thing.
