KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) — Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice has officially been placed on the team’s injured reserve list following a knee injury early in the Chiefs’ week four matchup with the LA Chargers.
The injured reserve list, better known as IR, is for any player with a football-related injury who needs to miss at least four weeks. While Rice heading to the IR for week five isn’t necessarily surprising, it does confirm that the injury is as serious as head coach Andy Reid has been hinting at.
Reid told reporters this week that “there is no greater sense of optimism” regarding Rice’s injury.
The head coach also mentioned that they’re still waiting for the swelling in Rice’s knee to go down so the injury can be tested further.
The injury occurred after a Patrick Mahomes interception. After Rice stripped the ball from a Chargers DB, Mahomes collided with Rice’s leg, appearing to hyperextend the emerging WR’s knee.
Mahomes explained that he felt terrible after watching a replay showing him attempting a tackle and colliding with Rice.
The injury has left many fans to speculate that the Chiefs will be in the market for a big-name receiver to fill in for the injured Rice, but just as they’ll have to wait for an official injury update, fans will also need to be patient ahead of the Chiefs week five game with the New Orleans Saints.
However, WR Mecole Hardman shared some insight into the current state of the Chiefs’ WR room as well.
“We’re confident,” he said.
“The coaches are confident in everybody in this room, I think we’ll be fine.”
We’ll see how true those words are on Monday Night Football.
