Rookie Rashee Rice has become the Chiefs' best WR. His mantra: 'Don't be soft'

LAS VEGAS — Rob Likens knew right away that Rashee Rice was an NFL talent.

His first step for a receiver his size jumped out. He seemed to have an innate ability to get his body between opposing defensive backs and the ball. But what jumped out to Likens about the talented wide receiver’s demeanor was that he was a true performer. He relished competition on the biggest stage.

As a senior at SMU, five of his seven games with at least 99 receiving yards came on the road, including his season-high 193-yard outburst against Maryland in the third week of the season, a performance that put him on pro scouts’ radar. 

"His best games were against the best DBs that he faced," Likens, SMU’s associate head coach, co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach, told FOX Sports. "His lack of fear of failure is, I think, what has helped him do what he’s doing right now."

The second-round rookie has now been showing the Chiefs, and the rest of the NFL world, that he’s a big-moment player. 

From Week 12-17, his last six games of the regular season (Kansas City rested starters in Week 18), he tied for third in the league with 43 receptions and was fourth with 518 receiving yards, according to Next Gen Stats. In the Chiefs’ wild-card game against the Dolphins, one of the coldest games in NFL history, Rice set franchise rookie playoff records with eight receptions for 130 yards. 

When Kansas City has needed to elevate its game — the team’s offensive issues this season, most notably drops by the wide receivers, have been well documented — Rice has stepped up. He’s been Patrick Mahomes’ most trusted target not named Travis Kelce, showing that he could be the team's No. 1 wide receiver of the future. 

Rice set Chiefs rookie records with 79 receptions and seven receiving touchdowns in the regular season. He also finished second for a rookie in team history with 938 receiving yards.

"A ton of talent. I saw that from Day 1," Mahomes said Wednesday. "With rookies, especially in Coach Reid’s offense, it takes time. It takes time to learn the different ways we run routes and the way you have to read coverage at the same time. He just continued to get better and better. That’s why I think you saw his production really get an uptick as the year went on. 

"He can be one of the top receivers in this league." 

The way Likens sees it, Rice has become trusted by Mahomes so quickly because he’s used to being a feared receiver. He’s embraced doing what it takes to get back to that in the NFL. 

At SMU last season, he led all of FBS with 112.9 receiving yards per game. He was one of just three FBS receivers to reach 1,300 receiving yards (he had 1,355 on 96 receptions with 10 touchdowns). 

"Just going there and punching the clock, getting a paycheck and going, ‘oh, I made it to the NFL. Hey, I catch three balls a game. That’s pretty good.’ That’s not what he wants," Likens said. "He wants to get back to being ‘I want to be the guy. When it’s on 4th-and-8 and we need a ball or a first down, I want the ball. I want Patrick Mahomes to look at me.’"

In college, Rice sat in the front row for meetings that began around 7 a.m. He was always engaged, raising his hand and asking questions. He took notes diligently. 

Likens was impressed by his intelligence. 

"It takes some people tons and tons of reps doing that, but his ability to go out and do it the first time and like nail it, I don’t know if I’d ever seen that before," Likens said. "Not only was he intelligent and learned at a really high rate, but he was also able to go out and actually apply it at a high rate. …. So that’s when you start going, ‘Wow, OK. This guy could be really good.’"

Chiefs’ players have noticed the same habits.

Wide receiver Justin Watson told FOX Sports that Rice "doesn’t take crap from anyone" and is "insanely" competitive. 

"Some rookies get in this position, and their head might start to get a little big because they made a bunch of plays throughout the year. You might start to lose them. He’s just one of those guys that has asked questions from Day 1," fellow receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling said Tuesday. "Asking questions up until this day, trying to figure out how to be the best version of himself and help this team win and go out and continue to be a playmaker." 

Rice’s production started to take off after Thanksgiving. His first 100-yard receiving game came in Week 12 against the Raiders at Allegiant Stadium, the site of the Super Bowl. 

According to the rookie receiver, nothing in particular kicked off his ascension. 

"Just practice," Rice said Monday. 

The value of which was emphasized at SMU. 

He suffered a toe injury against Maryland as a senior. He could’ve shut down his career to start preparing for the draft. He decided to keep playing. 

At first, it came without practicing much. Just playing games. After a poor performance — "I think (against) Cincinnati," Likens said — he was adamant about practicing no matter how much it hurt. 

After losing to the Bearcats, the Mustangs won on the road at Tulsa, when Rice erupted for nine catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns, one of which went for 70 yards. 

" I think he scored a long touchdown pass," Likens recalled. "He came running up to me on the sideline and he grabbed me by the shirt and started shaking me and he just said, ‘practice, coach! Practice!' It was like a confirmation that he understood what it takes to be successful."

Likens has a phrase he likes to use: ‘DBS.’ It stands for don’t be soft, both physically and mentally. 

During one summer meeting, Likens joked with players that they needed to get it tattooed on their body so they "don’t ever forget it." By the next meeting, Rice had the phrase tattooed on his hand. 

That led to Likens and other players going to the tattoo parlor as well. 

We had moments where we butted heads a little bit," said Likens, who coached Rice for just a season. "I think that was like a big breakthrough in our relationship." 

In the second half of the season, he broke through as a receiver. 

The Super Bowl is the next stage for him to embrace.

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Ben Arthur is the AFC South reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.