The Chiefs added new (and fast) WRs. That could help Rashee Rice have a bigger Year 2

Wide receivers Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and Xavier Worthy have been the focus of the Chiefs passing game at training camp. Speed has returned to the position group with the promise of explosive plays that were missing last season.

But it also means the field could open up for Rashee Rice, who last season often worked underneath and turned small completions into big gains.

In his rookie year, Rice became Patrick Mahomes’ top target among wide receivers with 79 catches for 938 yards, and he finished third in the NFL with 653 yards after the catch.

One of Rice’s biggest plays from 2023 happened in Las Vegas, when Rice, on a shallow cross, took a short pass and turned it into a 39-yard touchdown.

Plays like that happened without deep threats. The Chiefs now have that in the Brown, who caught 91 passes for the Baltimore Ravens in 2021, and Worthy. Worthy was the Chiefs’ first-round draft pick who ran an NFL Combine-record 4.21 40-yard dash.

“Those guys are taking the top off for me,” said Rice, who added he could easily return the favor.

Mahomes almost gets a gleam in his eye when thinking about the possibilities.

“I think it’s going to help him a ton,” Mahomes said. “Just like it’s going to help (Travis Kelce), having those speed guys stretching the field. Then they can really work in that intermediate, medium range, catch the ball and get YAC yards.“

The first opportunity to see what should be a more open attack is Saturday when the Chiefs visit the Jacksonville Jaguars in the preseason opener.

“We’re electric,” Rice said. “We’re looking forward to put on a show, ready to go out there and have fun.”

Rice has enjoyed a solid training camp, and in his first meeting with reporters at Missouri Western deflected questions about his involvement in a car crash.

He previously spoke to the issue in June after working at a youth football camp in Kansas City.

“All I can do is mature and continue to grow from that,” Rice said then. “This is a step in a better direction for me.”

Rice faces eight charges — including two felony charges — after a March road-racing incident resulted in injuries to other drivers. A police affidavit stated Rice, who has admitted to being the driver of a Lamborghini Urus vehicle involved, was going 119 miles per hour just before the crash.

Rice could face a suspension for breaking the league’s personal conduct policy. The NFL has said it is waiting for the legal process to proceed.

“It’s still a legal process and my team is handling that,” Rice said Tuesday. “The main thing for me is being able to be the best person I can be for my team so we can all come together. ... Just continue to surround myself with people that I want to be like.”

Rice said Mahomes has been supportive through his troubles.

“He’s been very important,” Rice said. “He’s there for me whenever I need him on or off the field. He’s only a call away, and he’s always going to pick up my call, so I got him.”