Andy Reid firmly denied the claims made by Kadarius Toney on early Sunday morning. The 65-year-old head coach seemingly alluded to some off-the-field struggles that have affected his third-year NFL wide receiver while setting the record straight.
Toney, who was traded from the Giants to the Chiefs last offseason, was inactive for the AFC Championship. He did not play.
According to Adam Schefter, Kansas City ruled him out due to both a hip injury and personal reasons. We later learned that Toney’s wife gave birth to their first child on Saturday, which was the primary factor for his absencee.
However, about 12 hours prior to kickoff, the 25-year-old pass-catcher went live on Instagram with some very sharp accusations. Toney went on an expletive-filled rant about his injury designation.
He proclaimed that the team has been lying. He said he is “not hurt, none of that s—.”
Andy Reid pushed back on the diatribe when asked about Toney’s status for the upcoming week as the Chiefs start to prepare for Super Bowl LVII. His approach to the topic was patient and definitive.
Toney will be “back out there” after “working through some things.” Reid did not expand further, but he did make it clear that the injury report was not a lie. An injury was most certainly not “made up” to keep Toney on the sideline.
There is a lot of room for interpretation within Reid’s comments about what might really be going on. It sounds like the team might be protecting Toney from a more public struggle with injury. Especially after the constant ridicule he has received throughout his career.
Either that, or someone is lying.
Maybe Reid is lying through his teeth while lying about Kadarius Toney’s injury. Probably not. Reid was clear that his team has not made up an injury, which if true, means that Toney’s rant would be untrue.