The Rashee Rice situation leaves the Chiefs with no choice but to poach from a rival

Rashee Rice will have his day in court, but for now, the Kansas City Chiefs have another Super Bowl to win. With an unprecedented three-peat on the line, now is not the time for the Chiefs to get complacent. They repeated last year thanks in large part to the great play of Steve Spagnuolo's defense down the stretch. Patrick Mahomes is still in his prime, but who is he throwing the football to?

Travis Kelce is a future Pro Football Hall of Famer as well, but he is not a kid any more. He is firmly in his 30s, and his older brother Jason just retired. While Rice was showing signs of becoming the Chiefs' new No. 1 option outside the numbers, reckless driving in Dallas could bring a swift end to that. Although the Chiefs can draft a wide receiver in the first round this spring, there is also this guy...

Tyler Boyd has been a productive player throughout his Cincinnati Bengals career, but remains a free agent. While there is supposedly an offer on the table for the Pitt product to go play for the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, they may not budge. Kansas City, who may be in need of a receiver, may need to seriously look at bringing Boyd into the fold. It would be quite the heel turn for him, but it is the Chiefs.

Let's discuss why the Chiefs may be left with no choice in having to pursue Boyd in his free agency.

Kansas City Chiefs should look at Tyler Boyd in his extended free agency

It may be the latter stages of NFL free agency, but I still find it hard to believe that a player like Boyd does not have a team to play for. Surely, he could return to the Bengals, but they have to figure out what to do with Tee Higgins first. He was slapped with the franchise tag around a month ago, but apparently, Higgins has no interest in playing on it. If he were to be traded, just re-sign Boyd then.

However, the Bengals are one of the few teams in the NFL over the last few years that have given the Chiefs trouble. Their defense is loaded, but we should expect for their defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo to be leading his own team next year. The truth of the matter is Joe Burrow is a special player at quarterback, but a pair of injuries in his first four seasons have made us quite concerned.

I think with the prospect of potentially losing Boyd for nothing should frighten the Bengals, especially if he were to go to the big bad bully over in the AFC West. For the Chiefs, Boyd is as good as anyone not named Kelce in their receiving corps. If Rice is out for the foreseeable future, it may serve them to double-down by signing Boyd to a contract, as well as prioritizing a wide receiver in the first round.

Paying a premium for Boyd is not an ideal solution, but one the Chiefs may have to seriously consider.