The Kansas City Chiefs made a splash ahead of the 2022 NFL trade deadline, acquiring wide receiver Kadarius Toney from the New York Giants in exchange for a third-round compensatory pick and a sixth-round pick. It was a trade that will further remake a Chiefs’ wide receiver group that has done a great job replacing the departed Tyreek Hill.
Their offseason acquisitions of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling have both paid dividends in the early going. Smith-Schuster has caught 34 passes for 494 yards and two touchdowns on the season, while Valdes-Scantling has caught 22 passes for 369 yards without a score.
Toney brings some big-time potential to the mix given his elite athleticism. He has struggled to stay healthy with the Giants, but there is no denying the potential that he possesses. Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy will do their best to get him going along with superstar Patrick Mahomes.
This is a team that has a ton of explosiveness on offense as Mahomes is surrounded by a ton of weapons. He is performing at a high level despite losing Hill and they are more dangerous because teams cannot focus solely on Hill and tight end Travis Kelce with upgraded weapons surrounding them.
However, the Chiefs may not be done adding to their wide receiver position. Just because they have added Toney, Kansas City reportedly isn’t out of the Odell Beckham Jr. sweepstakes. Toney is looked at as a long-term move, as he is only in the second year of his rookie contract. With Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman hitting free agency after the season, Toney gives them a long-term option along with Skyy Moore, their second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
The Chiefs can ensure that Toney is 100 percent healthy before deploying him on the field. The same can be said about Beckham, who would bring another experienced veteran with championship experience into the fold.
Kansas City hasn’t been mentioned recently as a landing spot for Beckham, but it sounds like they will be in on signing him once he is ready to return. If they can add him, along with the acquisition of Toney, the Chiefs’ offense will have an embarrassment of riches that even the best defenses in the NFL will struggle to slow down.
