Kadarius Toney is still out here blaming the refs

The Kansas City Chiefs have lost three of their last four games – including two straight — and sit just a game ahead of the resurgent Denver Broncos atop the AFC West. While there is certainly plenty of blame to go around for the team’s struggles, Kadarius Toney remains at the center of all of it.

Instead of moving on and focusing on a very winnable game against New England — QB Patrick Mahomes regretted venting to Josh Allen — the mercurial wide receiver is still blaming the refs for his costly offside penalty in KC’s loss to the Buffalo Bills.

“...[T]hey came back and lied and said they gave me a warning, which I never talked to a ref,” Toney said.

“Whether it was, an inch, two inches, whatever in front of the ball, the referee got a job to let me know,” Toney said. “He didn’t make no effort. You watch the video, he didn’t make no effort to say anything about no alignment. So apparently, he wanted to do that regardless. But like I said, we’re just going back to the details and just make sure we fine-print everything.

Instead of playing the blame game — head coach Andy Reid even said Toney didn’t check in with the refs — the WR needs to take a good look at himself. He’s made costly drops in addition to his boneheaded mistake last week. And how often does a first-round NFL draft pick end up on his second team come his second year in the league?

As our own DJ Dunson wrote, Toney’s biggest contributions so far have been the memes. “He’s the rare injury-prone receiver who’s worse off when he’s running routes. Drafting Toney in the first round ultimately cost Dave Gettleman his job.”

The talent wasn’t exactly in question. During his senior year at Florida, Toney averaged 69.5 yards per game, scored 12 TDs, and racked up 1,500 yards receiving. Some thought he was the steal of the first round because he slipped to 20th overall.

But once he was with the Giants, he was essentially a non-factor. He only started four of the 10 games he appeared in as a rookie — catching 39 passes for 420 yards — due to a litany of injuries and COVID-19. As ESPN’s Jordan Raanan wrote, he also irked the previous Giants regime by not showing up to voluntary OTAs in the spring of 2021. The problem the New York brass had with Toney? They never knew what to expect, Raanan said. And despite an absolute dearth of talent at the position, Big Blue was still eager to trade Toney.

But perhaps even some of his off-the-field behavior should be cause for concern. Toney actively  replies to trolls on the internet, rather than let his play talk. He posted about the Giants losing 40-0 in Week 1 — the same week he cost KC a win due to his butter fingers.

If Kansas City is going to get back on track, they need more maturity from their 24-year-old wide receiver. 

“We’ve moved on. That’s where we’re at,” Reid said.