ENGLEWOOD, Calif. — Laci Rice may have torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee after the Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver collided with quarterback Patrick Mahomes during Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers. A source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. .
Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Rice will undergo an MRI on Monday.
“I’m sure it’s not as good news as we’d like,” Reid said after the Chiefs improved to 4-0.
Rice’s injury is the latest to shake up the Chiefs and their hopes for a high-scoring offense. Fellow wide receiver Hollywood Brown suffered a sternoclavicular injury on the first play of the preseason and will miss most, if not all, of the season.
Running back Isaiah Pacheco is also on injured reserve after breaking his foot in Week 2, but could return later in the season.
Rice was attempting to recover a Chargers fumble during an interception return when the collision with Mahomes occurred. Rice’s knees absorbed the impact and his right knee appeared to hyperextend. He was helped off the field by medical personnel, examined, and then carted to the locker room.
Rice entered Week 4 leading the league in catches with 24 and second in yards with 288.
In his absence, the Chiefs got big contributions from tight end Travis Kelce, running back Kareem Hunt and wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
Kelce had seven catches for 89 yards in his first big game of the season, passing Tony Gonzalez as the Chiefs’ all-time leader in receptions.
Six years after being cut, Hunt led the team with 69 yards rushing in his first game against the Chiefs. Worthy caught a 54-yard pass from Mahomes and scored Kansas City’s first touchdown.
“The players stepped up and played their roles as best they could.” [Rice] Our offense had that, which is huge,” Mahomes said. “All we can do now is get back to basics and try to give our players an opportunity to succeed.
“With Rachy leaving early, we have to get Kelce back into a situation where he can get a ton of catches. Then, if the Chargers take away some of their outside players and just keep the middle of the field open, we “You can get Trav in some of these zone coverages.
“The whole Kelce thing is not a concern for me. I know he’s going to make plays whenever we need him, and that’s what he did today. .”
Hunt reinvigorated the Chiefs’ running game after rookie starter Carson Steele lost his second fumble in three games. Reid said Hunt did most of the work because he had the “hot hand” after the fumble, but he said he wouldn’t hesitate to use Steele in future games.
Mahomes said Hunt is a lot like the player who led the NFL in rushing in 2017.
“He’s always been a tough running guy. He’s tough to tackle and you can see that, he’s going to make sure to finish every run and fall forward,” Mahomes said.
“For somebody to come into an offense — I know it’s an offense he was a part of, but an offense he hasn’t played in years — and run the football hard and earn it well. It’s just being able to gain yards and catch the ball.” The ball came out of the backfield, and I was really happy to see that. [general manager Brett] Veach has created a great running back room that allows guys to step up and make plays while Isaiah isn’t here. ”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
