Last offseason, Kansas City Chiefs star wide receiver Rashee Rice found his name in headlines for the wrong reasons.

In May of 2025, as Rice prepares for his official Chiefs return after season-ending knee surgery, he appears to be using his platform for the better.

“Making a difference ,” the Chiefs posted on May 23, announcing that Rice “hosted his first football camp in Dallas with 300 young athletes!”

The social media post included photos of Rice posing and interacting with children on and off the field. Which is certainly a step in the right direction for the 25-year-old wideout.

Rice shared a video of himself training and going through footwork and route-running drills on April 29. And all signs point to him being on track for Week 1.

Yes, there’s still the off-the-field matter from 2024 that’s clouding Rice’s immediate future, as his civil court case has not yet reached a verdict. But no suspension is expected from the NFL until after a judge rules on this matter.

In theory, that decision could come in 2025 or 2026, depending on whether or not Rice’s hearing is pushed back.

Analysts and fans seem to be sleeping on Rice’s ability around the league. To be fair, that tends to happen when you miss the majority of a season with injury, but there’s been a recent debate online involving Rice’s 2025 ceiling — assuming health.

On May 21, Pro Football Focus analyst Trevor Sikkema ranked Rice 28th among all wide receivers heading into the 2025 season. This placed him near the tail end of Sikkema’s fifth WR tier.

“Rice missed a significant portion of the 2025 season due to injury, but his performance over the past two years remains strong, with receiving grades of 86.1 and 85.5,” Sikkema acknowledged. “He totaled 1,200 receiving yards in 2023, and that level of production is well within reach again if he stays healthy in 2025.”

So, based on his analysis, it feels like Sikkema agrees that Rice could once again rise in these rankings with a healthy campaign.

Having said that, he still placed Rice behind inconsistent players like Chris Olave, Marvin Harrison Jr., Brandon Aiyuk, DJ Moore, Jaylen Waddle, DK Metcalf and more.

Whether it’s a Chiefs fan or a member of the fantasy football community, many have come to Rice’s defense on social media in recent weeks.

“If Rashee Rice doesn’t serve a suspension this upcoming season, he will be a top 5 receiver in the league,” one KC fan wrote on May 16. “Some of yall Rice haters need to go watch the tape. He breaks 1-2 tackles for every catch he makes.”

On May 20, another user reminded: “Rashee Rice had 268 yards and 2 TDs in 3 games [by the way].”

“Rashee Rice was a monster last year,” chimed in Adam Best of Arrowhead Addict, reposting a WR graphic that placed him second in a combination of yards and targets per routes run in 2024. “The injury makes people forget, but he was on a scorching pace.”

Another KC fan agreed, stating: “I’m going to say it… Rashee Rice [is the most underrated WR in the NFL]. He was on track to be an elite WR last season. Barring any suspension… the comeback will be electric. Top 10. I feel extremely confident in this take.”

Finally, while checking a ranking similar to Sikkema’s, a fantasy footballer noted that “just looking at this chart makes me realize Rashee Rice is still being undervalued.”

With Rice on the comeback trail in 2025 and Patrick Mahomes also having Travis Kelce, Hollywood Brown, year two of Xavier Worthy, and rookies Jalen Royals and pass-catching RB Brashard Smith to work with, we could see a return of the Chiefs’ explosive passing attack of old this season.