Rashee Rice has spent more time surrounded by controversy lately than actually performing for the Kansas City Chiefs. Last season, he missed six games because of a suspension tied to his legal troubles. After an incident that occurred to breach his probation, Rice is serving a 30-day jail sentence until June 16, meaning he will miss both the Chiefs’ OTAs and mandatory minicamp.

Amid the ongoing legal trouble, former Chiefs OT Mitchell Schwartz mocked Rice’s teammates, noting that if the timing had stretched out just one more week, Travis Kelce and the rest of the locker room probably would have controversially welcomed Rice.

“It’s too bad OTAs are ending a week early, otherwise the guys could’ve broken out the “Free 4” t-shirts during practice on June 16th!! Now that he’s, ya know, actually in jail for the bad things he did. What a missed opportunity 🙁,” Schwartz wrote on X.

Schwartz’s comments about Kelce and his teammates came against the backdrop of Rice’s ongoing legal troubles dating back to March 2024. That was when Rice crashed a rented Lamborghini Urus on the North Central Expressway in Dallas alongside a Chevrolet Corvette, which was driven by his SMU teammate. The crash injured multiple people, and Rice, with his friends, fled the scene without checking on the injured people.

More than a year later, in July 2025, Rice pleaded guilty to two third-degree felonies: one count of collision involving serious bodily injury and one count of racing on a highway causing bodily injury. A Dallas County Judge sentenced Rice to five years of probation, 30 days in jail, and ordered him to pay $115,481.91 to the victims for out-of-pocket medical expenses.

After being punished by the court, the NFL announced a six-week suspension for Rice to start the 2025 season.

His teammates, however, decided to send a message to show their support for Rice. Ahead of the Chiefs’  week 2 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce, Thornton, and Brown were seen wearing “Free-4” shirts featuring Rice’s jersey number and multiple images of the receiver. The gesture immediately sparked backlash, particularly from the attorney representing one of the crash victims.

“Rashee isn’t Nelson Mandela or Pepe Mujica, men who fought for what they believed in. There is evidence that Rashee was going 119 mph in a $1,749 per day Lambo rental that had pot and a pistol in it, on a highway on Easter weekend. Free Rashee? He already thinks he’s getting away scot-free. He’s not paid a single cent of the $1.1 million judgment he already owes our client, who is living anything but pain-free,” Marc Lenahan, who is representing Kathryn Kuykendall, told TMZ in a statement.

At the same time, though, Andy Reid defended Kelce, Thornton, and Brown over the controversial gesture. According to the Chiefs’ head coach, the players were simply trying to support one of their teammates.

“I would tell you I know these guys love Rashee, and they feel for him sitting out here, and I think it’s no more than that. I just think that those guys, they love the kid and want him to feel part of it in their own way. I really don’t think it’s anything more than that,” Reid said.

Still, despite the public support from teammates and coaches, Rice eventually served his six-game suspension before returning in Week 7. Since then, however, the legal troubles surrounding the fourth-year receiver have not slowed down. If anything, they have only continued to escalate.

Rashee Rice violated his probation after pleading guilty

Just days before the Chiefs were scheduled to begin OTAs this month, wide receiver Rashee Rice was sentenced to serve 30 days in jail. The situation escalated after Rice tested positive for marijuana, violating the terms of his probation connected to his role in the March 2024 car crash.

Since Rice was already expected to serve 30 days at some point during his probation period, the Texas State Attorney’s Office confirmed Tuesday that he was ordered to report to jail immediately, according to ESPN.

“Mr. Rice was taken into custody today in the 194th Judicial District Court for testing positive for THC and ordered to serve the 30 days that he had previously been ordered to serve at a later time, starting today,” the Dallas County DA’s office said in a statement this week.

Rice was officially booked into Dallas County jail at 1:25 p.m. ET, according to jail records, and is expected to be released on June 16. Just one week before being sentenced to a 30-day prison sentence, Rice underwent a clean-up surgery, according to ESPN.

He will certainly take some time to recover from that as well, and coming in after all the legal troubles, there will be doubts if he can be at his best. That is where Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated connected Kansas City to former New England Patriots receiver Stefon Diggs. The Patriots moved on from Diggs because of salary cap concerns after the veteran receiver posted another 1,000-yard season and helped the franchise reach the Super Bowl. As of now, Diggs remains a free agent searching for his next team.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs still have not really addressed the need for a proven veteran receiver on the roster. Whether Rice’s latest legal troubles ultimately push Kansas City toward signing Diggs or another experienced wideout remains very much up in the air.