Rashee Rice is a long shot for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year

In a class dominated by high-profile quarterbacks and running backs, Rashee Rice is a long shot for bettors for NFL OROY.

If you ask Las Vegas oddsmakers, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice is a long shot for the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award. In fact, he’s such a far-fetched idea, at least according to the numbers, that it might be a risk worth taking.

Consider how many rookie wide receivers are dropped onto a team with a clear need for help that also just happen to have the game’s best quarterback leading the team. A rookie’s performance is all about the context into which he’s placed, which means Bijan Robinson should be a solid bet as a running back jumping into a heavy run-first system as opposed to, say, wide receiver Quentin Johnston who will contend with Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, and Austin Ekeler for production in 2023 for the Chargers.

The Chiefs came in first in points and yards last season in the NFL, and that came after they traded away the best wide receiver in franchise history. (Read that statement again before moving on.)  Gone from that unit is JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman, and everyone else in the wide receiver room comes with serious questions or concerns. Can Kadarius Toney stay healthy? Can Marquez Valdes-Scantling find consistency? Can Skyy Moore emerge as a reliable target?

Rice comes with questions of his own, and rookie wideouts have a tough time finding a lot of trust from Reid, but Travis Kelce has plenty of praise for Rice already. What if Rice can be the exception? He had 1,355 yards and 10 touchdowns last season for SMU.

Here’s what’s odd in terms of the current odds. Rice is the 12th ranked wide receiver on the odds list at +6600. In front of Rice are three tight ends and seven running backs. Throw in the quarterbacks and you have 26 total players who have better odds to win that award than Rice. Does that sound accurate? We don’t think so.