Five Things to Know About Chiefs’ Second-Round Pick & Former SMU WR Rashee Rice

2. He thrives in contested-catch situations.

Rice was lauded for his body control throughout the pre-draft process, garnering recognition as one of the best ball-winners in this class. His leaping ability is a big part of that, which he displayed at the NFL Scouting Combine with the top vertical jump (41 inches) of any receiver.

Here’s more from the folks at Pro Football Focus, who credited Rice with 16 contested catches in 2022:

“Rice’s ability to adjust to the ball in the air is as good as it gets in this draft class, and he also has some of the best body control in the draft class. That shows with his work at the catch point (16 contested catches last fall).”

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler agreed with that assessment in his pre-draft analysis, writing the following:

“Rice has outstanding body control, hand-eye coordination and arm length to consistently win at the catch point. He also has explosive leaping skills and play strength as a high-pointer. Rice times his leaps and wins jumps balls, leading the FBS with 18 catches of 20-plus air yards downfield in 2022.”

For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus compared Rice’s skillset to that of former Minnesota Vikings’ and current Carolina Panthers’ wide receiver Adam Thielen.

3. Rice is also a playmaker after the catch.

The 23-year-old Rice is more than just a jump-ball receiver, however, as he was also dangerous after the catch throughout his time with the Mustangs. His 33 receptions on screen passes ranked ninth among all players, and his 19 broken tackles ranked 23rd.

Here’s more from Brugler, who put it simply enough: “Rice catches the ball with yards-after-the-catch in mind.”

Chiefs’ Assistant General Manager Mike Borgonzi expressed a similar sentiment following Day 2, saying that Rice is like a tailback once he has the football in his hands:

“He’s a big kid and he’s explosive. He’ll go up and get the football, and once he catches it, he’s violent. He’s like a running back after the catch. That’s a big part of our offense…