First of all, rashee was a great pick and we should have zero regrets taking him.

At the same time, we haven’t let rashee loose like puka and zay have been. some of that is because Reid hasn’t but should, but also because rashee is still more raw. They’re being asked to do more things and run a complete route tree, where rashee is doing less things exceptionally well. As of this minute we probably need a puka/zay outside and downfield threat more than we need rice who is more a slot catch and run option on a team that for some reason is overflowing with slot catch and run options. The best comparison is that rashee right now is a better version of Jayden reed who is himself having an exceptional season.

Long term once we get some even normal outside WR options… maybe I’m a homer but I absolutely love rashee over puka once we’re set. I think zays an excellent player but it’s not worth comparing because he was never in our range anyway

I'm impressed with Bryce Hall man what he can do on that terrible team. Oh and Rice is a beast too

Best post in thread and a perfect understanding where things stand.

Rashee Rice: 938 yards
The rest of the WRs (MVS, Skyy, Toney, James, Ross, Hardman, Watson): 1,370 yards

I can’t wait to see what Rice does in the post-season.

Kupp being out helped .

Whats intriguing about rashee is, like kupp, I could see him playing power slot. Rams can run 11-personnel because kupp blocks like a TE. I like Noah gray but as a pass weapon, it's better to have a natural receiver out there in his place. It allows you to have great passing personnel while also being a threat with run blocking. We can't run 11 personnel because it means putting 2 cardio guys in at WR. Hell, even in 12 packages we have to put WRs on the field who add no value to the passing game. this year has felt a lot like last year's rams. Kupp got abused with usage because he was the only guy reliable for Stafford to throw to by a country mile. kupp is a stud but he also kind of needs help. We saw last year what that looks like. He still cooked but the rams offense was bad and kupp was targeted so much it was almost abusive.

And so the Rams gave kupp help. They finally landed a RB. Puka is a physical WR while tutu atwell is the guy who stretches the defense. It turns out DeMarcus has been an wven better option than tutu which makes sense since he is actually a great guy to play off of other WRs (but he can't be the guy himself).

Maybe this is a blueprint for where we're going. and it probably fits what some were already thinking. Getting some kind of swiss army knife on the outside and a speed option and then let rashee really settle in to that power slot role. it's something to get excited about but rashee needs help for this to work

Rashee is an outside guy that can play in the slot. Don't try to pigeonhole him in the slot.

#RealTalk

You think he'll end up being even better than his older brother Breece?

I see it as the opposite. I think rashee is absolutely elite in the short catch and run stuff and I can see him really thrive as a run blocker. I love him in the cooper kupp role although kupp runs a way more diverse route tree. I want to see our outside guys win with a little more speed and right now we're not asking him to do that. Again, is that a Reid trust thing or rashee being raw? I think it's both. It's such a missing element in our offense even with rice and you can see that in how our solution is to ask mahomes to throw to open intermediate/deep WRs and just cross his fingers. It still remains to be seen if rice can be a consistent field stretcher but I feel like if he's elite doing what he's doing, does that even matter?

The rams is a little intriguing because in puka you have some overlap between him and kupp. So maybe thats an option as well to have similar WRs and then interchange a little bit.

He brings more value winning outside, even if he isn't a burner. He wins with size and body control. He's not gonna stretch the field, you don't need him to do that outside to be effective. Winning in the intermediate zones are where the big boys win anyway.

Just a born X receiver. Everything Sammy was supposed to be soon enough he'll be more than that.

I'll say what I said the day we drafted him, I just cannot for the life of me understand how anyone didn't like this pick. It just seemed so obviously perfect from the moment it was made.

Yeah, it's a pretty ideal fit with his physical skill set.

They need to find the Z, but I imagine Aiyuk will fit there nicely.

I'll look for it but I saw a stat that said Rice was 2nd in the league in YAC from the slot.

He's an outside guy but he's got versatility. Love that

Posted in May
such as...

And this isn't revisionist history. I liked Rice before the pick was made. And like a few others who know how to evaluate college WRs, I wasn't a fan of Hyatt.