3 Nick Bolton Replacements the Chiefs Must Target Ahead of the Trade Deadline
By Joe Summers
2. Monty Rice - Tennessee Titans
A 2021 third-round pick, Rice fits the mold of a Brett Veach archetype. He was a solid prospect that suffered injuries early in his career and now fights for playing time on a stout defense.
He's only got five tackles in limited snaps on the season so it likely wouldn't take much to pry him away from the Titans. Undrafted free agent Jack Gibbons has flashed for Tennessee, making Rice an expendable asset.
Are we still pretending Monty Rice isn't good pic.twitter.com/2rzCSOjsov
— SportsTalkNSH (@SportsTalkNash) May 2, 2021
Rice was an extremely productive player in a four-year career at Georgia, amassing 219 career tackles while showcasing an impressive blend of physicality and speed that the Chiefs could tap into.
He earned first-team All-SEC honors his senior year and it's easy to imagine him pairing with Tranquill and Willie Gay Jr. to form one of the more athletic linebacking trios in the league until Bolton returns. At the least, Rice could provide quality depth as he learns under Steve Spagnuolo to reinvigorate his career.
With the Titans sitting in last place in the AFC South, jumpstarting the rebuild by selling players who fell out of favor makes a ton of sense.
While Rice would represent a project, this last potential linebacker target would immediately become the most accomplished linebacker on the team.