The Kansas City Chiefs will be without Hollywood Brown against the wide receiver’s former team, the Baltimore Ravens, in Week 1.
Despite that, Brown appeared to be in good spirits on social media ahead of the Thursday Night Football opener. “Your performance will feed families tomorrow brotha 🚀,” Brown messaged teammate and fellow KC wideout Rashee Rice on X.
He said this in response to a September 4 post from Rice that read: “Calm b4..” And also included a photo of Rice holding up four fingers on each hand.
Before long, both of these posts went viral — with Brown’s follow-up raking in 2.3 million views and 15,000 likes in 12 hours. While Rice’s original message had 2.4 million views but only 4,100 likes over a similar stretch of time.
With Brown missing in action and first-round selection Xavier Worthy appearing in his first NFL game, Rice and superstar tight end Travis Kelce are still expected to lead the Chiefs in targets versus the Ravens in Week 1.
Hollywood Brown & Rashee Rice Switcheroo Provides Unexpected Touch of Irony in Week 1
Since the early stages of the offseason, the Chiefs have been preparing for the possibility that Rice might be suspended for the start of the 2024 campaign. And yet, ironically, here we are on the eve of the game, and it is Rice — not Brown — that will be suiting up against the Ravens.
A combination of unexpected events caused this wide receiver switcheroo for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs ahead of Week 1.
First, Brown suffered a serious injury during KC’s initial preseason outing on August 10. Fortunately, after the Chiefs rushed the new WR addition to the hospital in Jacksonville, Brown received a positive prognosis that did not require him to start the season on the short-term injured reserve.
He will miss at least one regular season game, however, maybe more.
Later, on August 29, the league office hinted that they will likely wait out the legal proceedings before rushing to judgment on Rice’s punishment. A process that could push any potential suspension into 2025.
With Rice’s court date set for December 9, 2024, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport suggested that this delay could occur as early as the NFL draft.
For reference, this would mirror the way the league handled running back Alvin Kamara’s disciplinary case after charges of “conspiracy to commit battery and battery resulting in substantial bodily harm” in Las Vegas.
Kamara was eventually suspended three games at the start of the 2023 season despite his initial incident occurring in February of 2022. Meaning the playmaker was available for the New Orleans Saints throughout the entire 2022 campaign outside of injury.
Chiefs Beat Reporter Says Justin Watson Could Outsnap Xavier Worthy in Week 1
Just because Brown is sidelined, don’t necessarily expect Worthy to jump straight into the deep end against a tough Ravens defense.
“Rice should lead [the] Chiefs’ receivers in snaps,” Arrowhead Pride beat reporter Pete Sweeney told an inquisitive fan on September 3.
He even added that “I wouldn’t be stunned if another receiver, like a Justin Watson, outsnaps Worthy in his first game.”
There tends to be a veteran hierarchy when it comes to head coach Andy Reid. Remember, it took half the season for Rice to crack the starting lineup in 2023 — and he only did so after his talent proved to be undeniable.
Rest assured, Worthy will get some burn during the opener, but he probably won’t play as much as the fanbase desires. Instead, you’ll likely see some Watson and some Mecole Hardman. And you may even get a little bit of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Skyy Moore.
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