Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice will reportedly have his disciplinary hearing with the NFL on Sept. 30, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, meaning he will likely be eligible for their first four games of the season.
The Chiefs begin the season against the Los Angeles Chargers in Brazil on Sept. 5, then face the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, and Baltimore Ravens — a game that will take place two days before Rice’s NFL hearing.
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Rice’s status has been up in the air due to his involvement in a multi-vehicle crash in Dallas in March 2024. The news comes following word of Rice’s sentencing to 30 days in jail and five years’ probation for his part in the crash.
At the time of the incident, Rice’s lawyer confirmed that his client was driving a Lamborghini that was racing a Corvette involved in an accident with three other vehicles on a highway in northeast Dallas. He was driving 119 mph just before the crash occurred, according to a police report.
The drivers of the Lamborghini and Corvette fled the scene without providing any information or checking if anyone involved in the crash required medical attention. At least four people were injured in the crash. Rice turned himself in to the police nine days after the incident.
He faced eight charges for his role in the crash, including six counts of collision causing bodily injury, one count of collision causing serious bodily injury and one count of aggravated assault.
Two people involved in the accident sued Rice and Teddy Knox, who allegedly drove the Corvette, for $1 million in negligence and punitive damages — a lawsuit that was settled in favor of the plaintiffs, Dallas County court records indicate.
The lawsuit claimed that numerous injuries from the crash, including “trauma to the brain, lacerations to the face requiring stitches, multiple contusions about the body, disfigurement, internal bleeding, and other internal and external injuries that may only be fully revealed over the course of medical treatment.”
Rice was also suspected of assaulting a photographer in May, but the alleged victim dropped the charges and incurred no punishment from the league.
The looming suspension was very likely a factor in Kansas City drafting Texas receiver Xavier Worthy in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. The Chiefs traded up from the No. 32 selection in the first round to No. 28 to select the speedster.
Last season, Rice played only four games for the Chiefs after suffering a torn lateral collateral ligament in his right knee. He made 24 catches for 288 yards and two touchdowns.
