Another season, another Rashee Rice injury problem causing Kansas City to rethink their wide receiver room. Rice went limp during a play in the first half of the Chiefs’ game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday with an apparent hamstring injury. While Kansas City would love to have him available, a more pertinent problem presented itself. The Chiefs need receiver depth badly. They needed it before Rice’s injury and now they’ll need it even more. Their options are limited but not absent.
Rashee Rice pulled up after a catch and exited the game with an apparent leg injury pic.twitter.com/VXDskpMIHR
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) October 4, 2026
The one player that comes to mind is Brian Thomas Jr. Jacksonville might be hesitant to move off Thomas after Sunday, but it’s something the Chiefs have to consider if they want a player with big-play ability to fill in for Rice and amplify this offense. Here’s what the Chiefs should offer for Thomas and why they need to act swiftly if they want to get back to the Super Bowl this year.
Kansas City Chiefs land Rashee Rice replacement with this trade with Jacksonville
Brian Thomas Jr. had two catches for 17 yards and a touchdown in the Jaguars’ 22-17 win over Cincinnati on Sunday. He clearly has a role in this offense, but it’s not a big one. His role has significantly decreased since his rookie season, which is why the Jags might be interested in trading him. In theory, Thomas should yield anywhere from an early Day 3 pick to a fifth- or sixth-round pick in compensation for a trade. The Chiefs would find a way to get him heavily involved in the offense, which is why they need to make this move.
After he had 40 receiving yards in each of the first two games this season for the Jags, he has 25 total receiving yards the last two games. Jacksonville isn’t incorporating him in the scheme, which is why they have to consider moving him and letting him work in an offense that will use him. It’s also why the Chiefs need to be aggressive in landing him because he’s proven he can be good enough to elevate their offense, even if he’s struggling to in Jacksonville.
Why Brian Thomas Jr. is the perfect solution to Kansas City’s receiver problem
Thomas makes a lot of sense because he’s a vertical threat. Mahomes hasn’t had a real vertical threat since Tyreek Hill and though Travis Kelce can terrorize defenses with his ability to get downfield, he’s not that electric of a weapon anymore. Because Kansas City desperately needs receiver depth, this move makes a lot of sense. Yes, Kansas City would be banking on the potential Thomas showed his rookie season, but it’s worth it. The Chiefs don’t have many other options and not doing anything isn’t an option.
This offense has relied heavily on Kelce and Kenneth Walker III through the first month of the season. It’s worked, but it won’t help them turn into playoff contenders. They need true perimeter weapons if they want to be the threat they’ve been in the past. They’ve gotten by for years with a patched-together receiver room. This year, they need to make a big move and see if it can turn into the move that saves this offense.
Should Jacksonville give up on Brian Thomas Jr. already?
It would make a lot of sense for Jacksonville to turn their attention away from Thomas at this point. They haven’t tried to make him a big part of the offense, so there’s no need to keep him when he could yield a return of draft capital in a trade. His rookie season, he had at least five targets in all but five games and had a 1,000-plus yard receiving season. In the last two seasons, he has 13 total games with at least five targets. Why hold on to Thomas if he’s no longer an important part of the offense?
This could also present the opportunity to incorporate Travis Hunter back into the offense without feeling like it’s forced. Hunter showed he’s still a really good athlete when he intercepted a Joe Burrow pass on Sunday and juked Tee Higgins out during his return. The Jags already said they want to use him primarily as a cornerback. That doesn’t mean he can’t be a weapon sporadically on offense either.
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