Chiefs' Rashee Rice to be full participant in training camp despite jail sentence

New York Times

3 days ago

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice will be a full participant at training camp, coach Andy Reid said, after Rice was sentenced to five years of deferred probation and 30 days in jail as a condition of his probation last week.
'We're going to progress as normal with (Rice),' Reid said Sunday after the Chiefs arrived at Missouri Western State University's campus for training camp. 'He'll go in and take all the reps that he'll normally take. We always rotate that position, so depending on what happens here with the future, whoever needs to play will step in and know what they are doing and be in good shape to do it.'
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Reid said he did not know when the NFL would decide on a potential suspension for Rice.
On Thursday, Rice pleaded guilty in a Dallas County court to two third-degree felony charges, including a collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury. The charges stemmed from Rice's role in a 2024 multi-vehicle car crash in which he crashed his Lamborghini, causing a chain reaction collision involving four other vehicles.
As part of a plea agreement with the Dallas County District Attorney's Office, Rice will be required to pay restitution to all the victims for their out-of-pocket medical expenses before the plea, totaling $115,481.91.
'We have been closely monitoring all developments in the matter, which remains under review,' the NFL said in a statement after Rice appeared in court.
League sources confirmed to The Athletic on Thursday that Rice is likely facing a multi-game suspension.
Rice apologized to the victims in a statement released by his lawyer Royce West, and said, 'There have been a lot of sleepless nights thinking about the damages that my actions caused, and I will continue working within my means to make sure that everyone impacted will be made whole.'
In a preliminary investigation into the crash, police determined that Rice was racing his former SMU teammate Theodore Knox at high speeds when Rice struck a median wall. Rice and Knox ran from the scene, while two other drivers involved in the crash were treated for minor injuries, and two occupants of another vehicle were taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
An arrest warrant was issued for Rice after the crash, and he turned himself in to police one day later.
In addition to civil lawsuits filed by the other drivers involved, Rice was facing criminal charges of aggravated assault, collision involving serious bodily injury and six counts of collision involving injury.
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Rice was not placed on the commissioner's exempt list after the crash, and Jeff Miller, NFL executive vice president of communications, public affairs and policy, said the league would await the outcome of the case proceedings.
After playing in 16 games of his rookie season in 2023, Rice tore the lateral collateral ligament in his right knee in Week 4 last year, ending his season. The Chiefs selected him in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft.