AFC Notes: Rashee Rice, Quentin Johnston, Broncos, Chargers, Chiefs

By
Logan Ulrich
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Broncos

Chargers

Chargers HC Brandon Staley said first-round WR Quentin Johnston will play if he’s healthy enough to. Johnston has struggled mightily this season and picked up a rib injury in Los Angeles’ most recent game. Staley created a mini controversy after the game by saying Johnston was cleared to go back in but he felt it was better to hold him out. 

“It’s not because of a lack of confidence. It’s not because of any other part of your imagination,” Staley said, via ESPN’s Kris Rhim. “Quentin will be out there if he’s able to be out there.”

Staley clarified that even though Johnston was technically healthy enough to play, he thought it best to keep him out.

“It was a rib injury. OK? Your ribs affect how you breathe. OK? He plays a position where you have to reach in order to catch things,” Staley said. “So it affects the position, and so he was cleared to go back in the game, but there was apprehension on my part of putting him back in there until he felt good enough, and that is the storyline.”

Chiefs

Chiefs second-round WR Rashee Rice had the best game of his career in Week 12, topping 100 yards receiving with a touchdown. His 10 targets led the team, too, which is a promising sign for a Chiefs team that desperately needs other receiving weapons to step up. Chiefs HC Andy Reid said Rice is doing a good job of understanding how to be “Patrick-friendly” and earn the confidence of QB Patrick Mahomes. He explained what he means by that. 

“Getting better at understanding how to play against these crazy zones that these defenses throw at you and getting into space where you’re available,” Reid said via NFL Media’s Grant Gordon. “It’s not always a way that’s drawn up on a piece of paper, you’ve got to have a feel, and so when I say that, I’m saying he’s got a feel, and he’s building in all those different defenses and kind of seeing that and putting that together. There’ll keep being challenges this year, this will be a big challenge for him [against the Packers Sunday night], this team here, but he’s getting better every week at that.”

Mahomes added putting in the work on the practice field goes a long way with him, too. 

“How you work, I think that’s the biggest thing,” Mahomes said. “If guys continue to work and continue to practice, and I get a feel for how they run routes and a feel for how they’re seeing stuff on the football field, it just makes my job easier. Guys have done that throughout my career, and [Rice] has done a great job of that in Year 1, which doesn’t happen a lot of times with receivers. The goal for him now is to keep working, keep getting better, don’t be satisfied with where he’s at and hopefully get him more bigger games as his career goes on.”

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