CHIEFS TRADE FOR GIANTS WR KADARIUS TONEY
The Kansas City Chiefs acquired second-year wide receiver, Kadarius Toney, through a trade with the New York Giants on Thursday.
The Chiefs traded a 2023 third-round compensatory pick and a 2023 sixth-rounder to New York to acquire the speedy and elusive pass catcher. Toney was drafted in the first round last year but injuries and lingering issues behind the scenes have limited his time on the field. The former Florida Gator has only played half of the available games since he came into the league, missing 12 of 24. New York drafted Toney ahead of other wide receivers such as Rashod Bateman (Ravens), Elijah Moore (Jets), and Rondale Moore (Cardinals).
As per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Toney’s contract is fully guaranteed for $5.2 million through 2024, plus a fifth-year option. With the trade, the Giants clear that money off their books and pick up two draft picks. The team now has 9 picks in the 2023 NFL Draft and is likely to get two more (6th & 7th rounders) via the compensatory formula, as per OverTheCap. Although sitting at 6-1 with the new regime in what was thought by many to be a rebuilding year, the organization can be enthused by next year as it still has a future with ample draft capital to look forward to.
The Chiefs, on the other hand, hedge on the upside of the former 20th overall pick, turning one of the two compensatory picks they got from the Chicago Bears for losing Ryan Poles to the Bears’ general manager job (plus a sixth-rounder) into a former first-round pick with potential.
It’s reported that Toney and the Giants weren’t on the same page with sources suggesting the 23-year-old receiver did not fit head coach Brian Daboll’s “smart, tough, and dependable” philosophy that he uses to assess his players. Giants’ new offensive coordinator Mike Kafka is also a student from the Ed Reid tree and until his recent role in New York was the Chiefs’ quarterback coach, a relationship that is thought to have helped Kansas City’s plight in this trade.
Toney has only played two games this entire season, missing the bulk of it to injury. The Alabama-born receiver featured for the Giants in week 1 against the Tennessee Titans but did not receive a target before playing in week 2 against the Carolina Panthers and seeing only three targets through the game.
The explosive wideout has been underwhelming in New York, putting up only 41 receptions through his first two years for 420 yards in his career. So far, the bulk of those totals came in week 5 in 2021 against the Dallas Cowboys. Toney made 10 catches for 189 yards against Dallas before he was ejected for throwing a punch at safety Damontae Kazee after a scuffle involving then-teammate Evan Engram.
The Kansas City Chiefs rank 1st in average points scored per game (31.9) and second in yards per game (403.3) and now add a weapon for their All-World quarterback, Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes went on Twitter to share his excitement with the rest of the Chiefs’ fans by tweeting a simple smiling GIF.
The Chiefs are on a bye this week which means fans will have to wait until the 6th of November against the Titans to see Toney take the field. Toney will wear the no.19 in Kansas City instead of the 89 he wore with the Giants.
Toney also shared the news on Twitter, saying: “Chiefs Kingdom, baby! Thank you, God.”
NFL teams have been hurrying to get trades across the line with the Tuesday deadline fast approaching and now, so has Kansas City, with a player they hope will make an instant impact.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero