Pete Sweeney

I got to imagine, I have to imagine that this is the final, final, final straw for Rice when it comes to off-the-field issues.

It doesn't seem like if he did another thing that brought attention that you don't want to the team that they would continue to push.

But I came away from that saying they're going to do their best to support Rasheed.

and cross their fingers and hope this is the shoe that they have.

And I think to an extent they need to do that because if you really look at the wide receiver room, they need a true alpha, a true number one.

They think Rashid can be that so long as he stays healthy and has a good head on his shoulders off the field.

there's a risk to that, you know, because of the patterns we've seen.

But just the pure on-field football, regardless of what you think about this off the field, it does seem like they'll have who they believe to be their number one receiver for the start of camp.

Those are all the – it's a lot of elements, but, you know, those are kind of the thoughts that I came away with from the press conference.

Well, let's take Taequann Thornton, who they brought mid-season, was it two years ago?

And they said, look, just get in the building, and maybe you can develop into something for us.

That worked out, right?

But you give Taequann Thornton, when he signs to the Chiefs practice squad, and you give him all of the off-the-field issues that Rasheed Rice has, he's probably never playing in the league again.

And so...

Yeah, I mean, that is one of the hard truths about the league that we cover is that the better player you are, and make no mistake, the Chiefs think Rasheed Rice can be one of the top five wide receivers in the NFL.

I mean, that is how they feel internally about him.

There's going to be a longer leash, and I get some of the fan criticism and to an extent disgust of wanting to see this guy go.

But the hard truth, again, in this league that we cover is if Rasheed Rice

went, you released him, much like Kareem Hunt, when he won the rushing title and you released him, he's going to get picked up almost immediately.

And so you have to, I think, sometimes swallow that, make a business decision if you want to be one of the better teams in the NFL.