Who Should I Start? Rashee Rice or Ladd McConkey

Thursday, June 19, 12:05 PM

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said that he expects both wide receiver Rashee Rice (knee) and offensive tackle Josh Simmons (knee) to be full participants at the start of training camp at the end of July. Rice played in only four games last year before suffering a season-ending LCL tear. The injury is behind the 25-year-old, though, and he'll be ready to rock for Week 1 of the 2025 regular season this September after he was a full participant in OTAs and minicamp this spring. Before his injury last year, Rice was the clear WR1 for quarterback Patrick Mahomes and had 24 catches for 288 yards and three touchdowns in the first three games. However, he has a possible suspension hanging over his head for a hit-and-run incident in March of last year, which makes him more of a high-end WR3 target in fantasy drafts this fall.

Monday, June 23, 6:52 PM

The additions to the Los Angeles Chargers' offense this year should make second-year wide receiver Ladd McConkey even more dangerous, according to The Athletic's Daniel Popper. The different is that last year the offense was stunted because they lacked vertical threats. This year, the Chargers have options that can attack defenses vertically from various alignments, which will open up short and intermediate areas for McConkey. Rookie wideout Tre' Harris and rookie tight end Oronde Gadsden both have the ability to make plays down the field for the Bolts and take attention away from McConkey. McConkey was a fantasy stud in his first year in the NFL with 82 catches on 112 targets for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns in 16 regular-season games (14 starts). The Chargers will remain a run-first offense, but McConkey should still be in play as a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 in fantasy.