The Kadarius Toney offside saga continues to rage online – from a viral, out-of-character moment from Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, to indulgent fan reactions – it really feel like this is one of the few ‘nothing’ stories that has survived the 24 hour news cycle refresh.
And despite backtracks from both Mahomes and head coach, Andry Reid, it seems like there are still media members out there who feel like the Chiefs were well and truly hard done by.
My take is simple: Refs should never determine the outcome of a game. Kadarius Toney may have lined up offside, but it had nothing to do with the outcome of the play. BOTH can be true.
Thought @Realrclark25 and @PatMcAfeeShow made a good point today by saying this wouldn’t… https://t.co/YfnNsHZ5wo
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) December 11, 2023
Was It Wrong To Call The Offside Penalty On Kadarius Toney?
Schultz’s point is understandable – the referees are there to officiate the game within the confines of the rules, so as to actually let the players play and for what may happen to happen. Did it really change the outcome if Toney’s leg was a few inches offside.
Yet, ultimately, you gotta play within the vague confines of the rules – and you have to be consistent. It’s been determined by the league that if you are offside on a play then, regardless of the outcome, it is a penalty – and it is important that players and teams respect that.
What Do Other Media Members Think?
Strangely, it seems like Schultz is not the only one in the media criticising the officials’ call on the field.
Emmanuel Acho, former pro turned sports – talk – someone who does something, had this to say about the incident.
The Kadarius Toney penalty has me thinking of the worst calls in NFL history, what’s yours?
I’ll start: pic.twitter.com/jziXm1SO66
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) December 12, 2023
Should the referee have informed Kadarius Toney that he was in front of the line of scrimmage, maybe. But at the same time, it is Toney’s responsibility to know where he is on the pitch when he is lining up in formation.
Even so, it seems like some out there who do blame the receiver instead of the officials:
ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky said Kadarius Toney never checked with the refs throughout the game. On top of that, Toney lined up offside at least 3 other times and was not penalized for it.
Yikes. pic.twitter.com/PQmMvBvMV7
— Farzin Vousoughian (@Farzin21) December 11, 2023
I personally think that Dan Orlovsky has a point – conceded as well by Reid himself – if Kadarius Toney does not check with the referees, AND had multiple other offenses of the same manner that were not called, it feels very difficult to truly empathise with the pro-Toney, anti ref position.
It should be interesting to see how this continues to unfold, and really how long people will keep talking about this – although I guess it is the Chiefs.
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