One of the Kansas City Chiefs’ top offseason priorities has been to upgrade the receiving corps around All-Pro quarterback Patrick Mahomes. In some cases, that might mean addition by subtraction.
Following the arrival of marquee free agent signing Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and first-round pick Xavier Worthy, even with Rashee Rice’s ongoing legal issues hovering over the upcoming season like a dark cloud, the Chiefs may be primed to moving on from an electrifying yet inconsistent offensive contributor.
Bleacher Report’s David Kenyon put together a list of each team’s player most likely to be cut before the 2024 regular season kicks off, including Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney.
“The idea of Kadarius Toney,” Kenyon writes for Bleacher Report. “Has been far more exciting than his performance in three NFL seasons. Worse yet, a mistake-plagued season with the Chiefs included just 200 yards on 38 touches for Toney. He’s an expendable piece in Kansas City.”
If the regular season opened today, Toney would be buried on Kansas City’s depth chart, fighting for a roster spot as the No. 5 receiver.
The case for the Kansas City Chiefs Cutting Kadarius Toney
Originally chosen by the New York Giants No. 20 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Chiefs acquired Toney in exchange for a 2023 third-round and sixth-round pick, but, has been wildly inconsistent since his arrival in Mahomes’ arsenal.
“He just isn’t making progress at the NFL level,” an AFC Scout told me recently. “What teams like the Chiefs see in him, though, is the stupid athleticism. He teases you with that. That athleticism just never translates.”
While Toney played a critical role in the Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory over the Eagles following the 2022 regular season, he has yet to live up to his billing as a former first-round pick.
Last season, Toney caught just 27 passes for 169 yards with one touchdown reception, and all three of his career touchdowns have come in a Chiefs uniform.
Whether Rice is available and avoids a significant suspension from the NFL might ultimately dictate Toney’s fate, but, it has become evident that to date he has been unable to be a consistently productive contributor on offense to come anywhere close to matching his athletic potential.
After all, last season, Toney was charged with four drops in 37 targets.
The Chiefs already previously declined Toney’s fifth-year option, so, releasing Toney and freeing up his roster spot may prove more valuable and worthwhile than the $2.5 million dead-money charge to do so.
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