By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
After charges were filed against Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice last month for his role in a 2024 offseason multicar crash, the initial thought was his punishment from the NFL wouldn't be far behind.
Now though, it appears Rice will not face a disciplinary hearing until September 30th. Rice will go before Sue Robinson, a former US District Judge, who serves as the disciplinary officer jointly appointed by the NFL and NFL Players Association.
Chiefs Insider Matt Derrick of ChiefsDigest.com says it's rare these cases go before Robinson, with the last case being Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson
"The thing that's notable about that, is that when Sue Robinson handed down her decision, she determined six games was the suspension, and the NFL didn't like that," Derrick says on the KFEQmunnity show. "The NFL appealed, which the NFL can do, either side can appeal her ruling, and eventually he ended up with an 11-game suspension because the NFL wanted basically an entire season."
Derrick says the tricky thing though is, at the end of the day no matter what Robinson rules, the ultimate decision still comes back to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell
In Watson's case, Goodell appointed someone else to make the decision. Derrick says in Rice's case, the question comes down to how much does the NFL want a suspension?
Reportedly, per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the NFL initially proposed a double-digit suspension for Rice as well, while the NFLPA, along with Rice's agents and attorney, argued against that asking for a much shorter suspension that better reflects the precedent for a case like this.
Derrick also points out the NFL may want a case like this to be public, and not behind closed doors like most personal conduct cases, to try to make a point in getting players to understand there will be punishments for street racing
"You know Rashee Rice could end up finding himself just being the poster boy," Derrick explains. "I'm curious how the NFL will balance those two, because the fact that at this point they're at an impasse and it's willing to go to the disciplinary officer, the NFL may be willing to go ahead and drag this out for a few months just because they want to send a message."
Just last week Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett was cited for driving 100 miles per hour in a 60 mile per hour zone. He's been stopped for speeding at least seven other times.
As it stands, Rice would be available for the first four weeks of the Chiefs regular season, which Derrick points out is big because Kansas City feels they need a player like Rice to beat the Los Angeles Chargers in week one. With one preseason game left to plan the roster, how might that affect it?
Derrick says with not knowing when Rice will not be available, it certainly adds some uncertainty.
"There could be a negotiated settlement so you don't know that you're going to have him for one game, zero games, four games, three, it really could be a fairly wide range," Derrick says. "And then once he's suspended it could be a fairly wide range of how long you are without him, it certainly effects roster construction."
Derrick says if you're the Chiefs and if you feel you're going to be without Rice for an extended period of time, you may need to keep seven receivers, cutting yourself at another position, or losing a player you like.
Derrick says it certainly is going to create a little bit of a headache for General Manager Brett Veach in how they build that week one roster and make final decisions.
You can follow Matt on X @KfeqMatt and St. Joseph Post @StJosephPost.