Chiefs’ Andy Reid Defends Kadarius Toney After Latest Blunder

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid is not ready to give up on wide receiver Kadarius Toney in spite of all the mistakes he has made this season.

Toney’s latest blunder came this past Sunday, when a perfectly thrown ball by Patrick Mahomes bounced off of Toney’s hands and into the arms of New England Patriots linebacker Jahlani Tavai for an interception in the first quarter.

The turnover set up a Patriots touchdown and also marked the last time Mahomes targeted Toney on the afternoon. The Chiefs went on to win the game 27-17, but Toney’s blemish was still mentioned by reporters after the game.

“We’ll see how things go. I’m not down on Toney,” Reid said, via Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. “He does some good things, man, so we’ve just got to keep — he’s a young guy, so we’re not talking about somebody that has been in this league a long time.”

Of course, last week, Toney committed an offensive offsides penalty that wiped out what would have been a go-ahead Kansas City touchdown against the Buffalo Bills late in the fourth period.

Toney ended up logging two catches for five yards in Week 15. On the season overall, he has caught 27 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown in 13 games.

The 24-year-old, who played his collegiate football at the University of Florida, was originally selected by the New York Giants with the 20th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft.

He appeared in 10 contests during his rookie campaign, hauling in 39 receptions for 420 yards and eight scores. The Giants then traded Kadarius Toney to the Chiefs midway through the following season. In nine games between New York and Kansas City in 2022, he totaled 16 grabs for 171 yards and a couple of touchdowns.

The Chiefs improved to 9-5 with their win over the Pats and will take on the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day. They will then face the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Chargers to close out the regular season.