Rashee Rice’s career day running through Colts' secondary keys Chiefs rally

KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County. Share your story idea with Tod.

—

Rashee Rice didn’t make much of an impact during the first half Sunday as the Kansas City Chiefs spotted the Indianapolis Colts a five-point halftime lead at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

He made only three catches for 9 yards, but Rice played like a man possessed with the season likely hanging in the balance in the second half and overtime as the Chiefs rallied for a walkoff 23-20 victory that injects sorely needed optimism into the three-time AFC champions’ postseason outlook.

“He’s got the mentality that he wants to be great, and he wants to be that guy in that moment,” Patrick Mahomes said.

Rice sparked to life on the final play of the third quarter with a 42-yard catch and run.

Indianapolis led 20-9, and Rice’s big play moved Kansas City into the red zone, only for a Kareem Hunt fumble to short-circuit the drive, but he wasn’t done.

After the defense started a three-and-out, Rice’s massive fourth quarter started modestly with a 3-yard catch for a third-down conversion and a two-point conversion to cap the Chiefs’ lone touchdown drive of the game.

Three straight three-and-outs, including two by the Colts, followed before a game-saving drive for the field goal to force overtime.

With Kansas City backed up to their own 3-yard line by a penalty, Rice broke free on an intermediate crossing route and dashed 47 yards.

“They had a lot of attention on Travis (Kelce), obviously, so it helped to have another guy step up and make plays,” Mahomes said.

Later in the drive, Rice made a 19-yard catch and run on fourth-and-3 to keep hope alive for Chiefs Kingdom.

“I left the ball a little too high, but he showed his athleticism and went up and got it,” Mahomes said of the fourth-down grab, which came one play after Noah Gray was knocked from the game with a concussion.

In overtime, Rice added a 21-yard catch and run into field-goal range, giving Harrison Butker the chance to push the Chiefs back above .500.

“I’m not the biggest guy on the field, and I’m usually in the middle of the field, so I’ve got big guys chasing me the whole time,” Rice said.

It all added up to a career day for Rice, who finished with eight catches for a career-best 141 yards, including five catches for 132 yards after halftime.

“We’re glad he’s back,” coach Andy Reid said. “He’s big and he’s strong, fast — all that stuff — tough to bring down. He pushed through. He was tired there, but he pushed through, and I thought he did a nice job.”

The bulk of Rice’s production, another career-best at 103 yards, came after the catch, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

“There’s nothing like making 1-5 happy when you complete a catch and turn upfield,” Rice said.

—