After a long wait and a lot of debate, the suspension for Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice is official, per Adam Schefter. Rice will be suspended for the first six games of the NFL season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. This relates back to a street racing accident he caused in April of 2024, where multiple parties were injured and he fled the scene. We now have our resolution. 

Before he got hurt last season, Rashee Rice was the WR2 in PPR behind only Malik Nabers. Let’s take a quick look at the precedent for such a suspension, what it means for the Chiefs, and what it means for fantasy football.

 

 

 

Rashee Rice Six Game Suspension Precedent

The NFL had yet to deal with this exact circumstance. So they needed to set a new precedent. In the past, we have seen six-game suspensions before. Here are some examples

It has yet to be seen if Rashee Rice will appeal the suspension or not as we have seen successful appeals in the past. As this suspension was seemingly worked out in arbitration between the NFL and NFLPA, my assumption is that he will not appeal it. 

Rashee Rice Suspension Impact On The Chiefs

The Chiefs' schedule includes the following teams over the first six games:

As you can see, that includes an international division game against the Chargers, a playoff team from last year, as well as three other marquee opponents with the Super Bowl rematch with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Baltimore Ravens, and the Detroit Lions. Rice will return for their matchups against the Las Vegas Raiders, Washington Commanders, and Buffalo Bills before their bye week. 

 

 


 

Rashee Rice Suspension Impact On Fantasy Football

Most analysts were expecting a suspension of about six games. So the reality here is that this was already baked into his average draft position (ADP) to some degree. Based on our composite ADP, which collects data from multiple sources, his draft position ranged from pick 54 to pick 72 with an average of 65. That puts him in the fifth or sixth round of most drafts. 

Whether or not you should draft Rashee Rice in fantasy football depends on your format and roster construction. If you play in a shallow league, say, with 10 teams, 1 QB, 2 WRs, 2 RBs, 1 TE, and a FLEX, I’m absolutely willing to draft Rashee Rice at or above his current ADP. It’s not hard to find replacements in a format like that. If it’s a deep league, say 12 teams with 1 QB, 3 WR, 2 RB, 1 TE, and multiple flexes, I might be a little more hesitant to draft Rice.

Guys like Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Xavier Worthy should not have much of an impact here, as we’ll have 11 games of Rice, including the most important part of the season for fantasy playoffs, as expected. Players like Hollywood Brown or even rookie Jaylen Royals (if healthy) could see a boost in the early season if they pick up extra snaps. But they will likely go back on the back burner when Rice returns. 
 

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