Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach isn’t losing any sleep over the team’s decision to trade for Kadarius Toney in 2022.
The Chiefs’ lead executive didn’t express any buyer’s remorse over the deal that brought the receiver to Kansas City when he spoke with reporters on Thursday, two days after Toney was cut from the roster.
“I don’t think we’re sitting here going for a third straight Super Bowl [championship] had we not made that trade,'” Veach said. “So, from that standpoint, we’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.”
When the Chiefs acquired Toney in the middle of the 2022 season, they picked up a young receiver who struggled to live up to his billing as a first-round pick in the 2021 draft. They gave up a decent price for the struggling receiver too, handing the New York Giants third- and sixth-round draft picks in hopes that Toney could help fill the void left by Tyreek Hill’s departure in the previous offseason.
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Toney’s struggles continued, though. He had just 14 receptions for 171 yards in seven regular-season games with the Chiefs in 2022. He was hyped a bit entering the 2023 season, but only had 27 receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown in 13 regular-season games.
Beyond the stat sheet, Toney made a handful of costly errors for the Chiefs in the 2023 season. He had a drop that led to a pick-six in their season-opening loss to the Detroit Lions. In that same game, he dropped a pass that would’ve set the Chiefs up to kick the game-winning field goal. He also lined up offside on a play that negated a touchdown for the Chiefs in their late-season loss to the Buffalo Bills. Shortly after that loss, Toney had another drop that led to an interception in a game against the New England Patriots.
Toney missed the final three weeks of the regular season and the entirety of their postseason run, with the Chiefs ruling him out of those games due to injuries. However, Toney said in an Instagram live ahead of the Super Bowl that he wasn’t injured and Kansas City was lying about his status. He later apologized, saying he didn’t mean to attack the Chiefs.
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While many might remember Toney’s lowlights with the Chiefs, he made a pair of big plays in their Super Bowl LVII win over the Philadelphia Eagles. He caught a touchdown in the fourth quarter before returning a punt 65 yards that led to another late score.
That’s part of the reason why Veach was upset the Toney experiment wasn’t able to work out in Kansas City.
“We’re certainly disappointed,'” Veach said. “I think he’s disappointed. We really liked the kid, and I know that people have different takes on Kadarius, but I know in this building he’s a bright kid, he’s a smart kid. When you look back on it, some of this stuff is a stroke of bad luck in regards to some of the injuries you can’t control. Like walking out the first day of training camp last year and tearing his [meniscus]. I mean, that was something that was just unfortunate.”
Veach also remains optimistic that Toney can have a productive NFL career, though he put the onus on the receiver to make it happen.
“Sometimes you can make some bad luck turn into good luck by just doing some little things in the offseason [to] take care of your body,'” Veach said. “I think that’s a process he’s working through. It’s certainly not for a lack of talent. … If he’s able to tighten up some of the offseason stuff and get his body [right], I think he’ll go out there and make a ton of plays for another team.”
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“I think it goes both ways. I’m certainly sure that there would be things that he would do differently in regards to just some of the offseason and stuff and taking care of the body. I think it’s a process. He’s a really smart kid and I do think he’ll figure it out. … He was actually a lot of fun to be around, and I just hope for the kid that he can get a little good luck on his side and stay healthy.”
The Chiefs made a few notable additions at receiver this offseason to help supplement the supporting cast around Patrick Mahomes, a likely sign that Toney’s days in Kansas City were numbered. They signed Marquise “Hollywood” Brown in free agency before selecting Xavier Worthy in the first round of the NFL Draft. They also brought back JuJu Smith-Schuster, signing him after he was cut by the Patriots earlier in August. Kansas City also found out Thursday that Rashee Rice, who emerged as the team’s best wide receiver late in his rookie season last year, will be allowed to play this season amid legal troubles stemming from an offseason car wreck.
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