Round 3, pick 64: WR Rashee Rice, SMU / 6’1 200 LBS
After the acquisition of wide receiver D.J. Moore, the Chicago Bears are in a much better position with the current WR room. Darnell Mooney and Chase Claypool will provide support to Moore, and that now leaves us to question how early the Bears will draft another.
Even with the depth chart looking better I still think Poles and company will target a guy like Rashee Rice in the third or fourth round. Rice is a fast, long, and effective ball tracker as a receiver. He ran 4.51 40-yard dash at the combine, which isn’t world beating but it’s solid, and his 20- and 10-yard splits were quite fantastic. There are other wide outs that I’d prefer more than Rice, but his potential to be great is hard to deny.
He’s one for the spectacular catch, as he made many highlight-reel worthy catches during his tenure at Southern Methodist University. Rice has an impressive second gear that allows him to get vertical, and quickly. He just needs more experience in a detailed offense.
WHAT A CATCH, RASHEE RICE 🤯 pic.twitter.com/q0MiQL9h1z
— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 18, 2022
Rice had an impressive senior season with the Mustangs, where he tallied 96 catches on 1,355 yards. He found the endzone 10 times, bringing his collegiate total to 25 in the four years he spent at SMU.
Obviously, there’s flaws in his game as well. Rice comes from a wide-open spread offense at SMU to the NFL, where the route tree is a lot more complex. He needs to get better at running the deep route as he was subject to tons of underneath ones in college. Zone coverage also throws him for a loop based on some of the tape I watched, but those are certainly things that can be taught if he’s coached correctly.
Rashee Rice continues to be a problem🤧
— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 24, 2022
He’s a second team AP All-American with the potential to become a solid receiver in this league. I personally see shades of CeeDee Lamb in his game, just based on his quickness alone. The jury is still out on Claypool, and arguably Mooney too. Drafting a wide receiver here seems like a move the Chicago Bears will make.
Super Bowl Champion Offensive Tackle Linked to Chicago Bears
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