Two Chiefs players arrested in Kansas

The Chiefs’ rocky offseason following their second consecutive Super Bowl season continued Friday as Adam Teicher of ESPN reports that second-year offensive tackles Wanya Morris and Chukwuebuka Godrick were both arrested Thursday night in Johnson County, Kansas. Following arrests for misdemeanor possession of marijuana, Morris and Godrick were booked into jail and released Friday morning on bond.

Neither lineman played much of a role in Kansas City’s 2023 title. Godrick joined the team as a part of the league’s International Player Pathway Program last year out of Nigeria but failed to make an in-game appearance during the season as a member of the practice squad. He had been granted an international roster exemption for the 2024 season.

Morris actually played some significant snaps as a rookie third-round pick, starting four games near the end of the season as an injury replacement for Donovan Smith. Coming into the 2024 season, Morris was being challenged to compete with second-round rookie draft pick Kingsley Suamataia for the starting left tackle job opposite Jawaan Taylor following the departure of Smith in free agency. 

This news comes most unwelcome for a team in Kansas City that has seen its breakout rookie receiver Rashee Rice face a slew of legal trouble in the offseason. As the team was already bracing for a suspension for Rice following eight felony charges stemming from a hit-and-run incident in late-March, Rice upped the ante by becoming the focus of an investigation for an alleged assault at a nightclub in Dallas.

The NFL will allow the legal process to take its course before ultimately coming to a decision on league punishment for the three players. The league has recently laxed its position on punishments for positive marijuana tests, but illegal use, possession or distribution of drugs is still prohibited in the NFL, and marijuana possession remains illegal in Kansas.