The Kansas City Chiefs started the season without wide receiver Rashee Rice due to a six-game suspension and fell to 0-2. Meanwhile, multiple players used this absence as an opportunity to show support for their teammate.
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Travis Kelce and Tyquan Thornton showed up for Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles wearing matching black t-shirts. The design featured the text "Free 4" along with three photos of Rice.
#Chiefs Tyquan Thornton wearing a “Free 4” shirt #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/d9b1Mkoa3i
— Matt Foster (@MattFosterTV) September 14, 2025
This move to wear "Free 4" shirts caused some division among NFL fans. Some who root for the Chiefs said that this was a "nothing burger." Those who don't like the Chiefs, however, took a different approach while criticizing the decision-making.
"Free him from what? From attempted vehicular homicide? From hit & run? From fleeing the scene of an accident? Fleeing the scene of a crime? There's so many possible crimes to pick from," one person posted on X.
Another person chimed in while asking, "Maybe he shouldn't have committed a crime?"
The NFL announced in August that it had handed Rice a six-game suspension — without pay — for violating the league's personal conduct policy. He will be eligible to return to the lineup for the Week 7 game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
The suspension stems from an incident that occurred in March 2024 on a Dallas highway. Rice and a friend reached nearly 120 mph during a race before causing a crash that collected a half-dozen vehicles and injured multiple people.
Rice fled the scene as the Dallas police issued an arrest warrant on one count of aggravated assault, one count of collision involving serious bodily injury, and six counts of collision involving injury. The receiver ultimately turned himself in at the Glenn Heights Police Department.
According to the NFL, Rice pleaded guilty to "two third-degree felony charges of collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury." The judge sentenced him to 30 days in jail while allowing the receiver to choose when he serves the time.
Rice also paid $115,000 to the victims of the incident for their medical expenses.
