Fantasy Upside
The Chiefs traded for Kadarius Toney midway through last season, and he got everyone excited with a 90-yard performance in Week 10. Toney suffered an injury, but when he returned he had some impressive moments including two touchdowns, a 70-yard performance, and a pair of Super Bowl touchdowns including a punt return. Toney should see a larger role in 2023 as the Chiefs lost JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman this offseason. Granted he’s only headed into his third season, but our projections are predicting a career season for Toney. He’ll be a starting wideout in one of the highest-powered offenses in the league. He also offers value as a rushing threat and he saw six carries in limited playing time with the Chiefs last season.
Fantasy Downside
While Toney had flashes of excellent play, he wasn’t very consistent. In the 10 games he played with the Chiefs, he had one reception or less in five of them. Toney has also had career-long injury problems, which is why the Giants parted ways with him in the first place. We’ve never fully seen Toney put together a good season, even though his talent is undeniable. The Chiefs also have a very spread out offense with weapons like Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Skyy Moore, rookie Rashee Rice, Travis Kelce, Jerick McKinnon, and more. Targets will be hard to come by in this offense.
2023 Bottom Line
The Chiefs could finish with the most passing yards in the league again this season, which sounds positive for Toney. But part of what makes this offense perform so well is the variety of options. Toney will likely see more targets than the other options, but our projections have him finishing below 600 receiving yards. Toney’s talent paired with Patrick Mahomes’ arm gives him a high ceiling entering 2023, but we need to actually see the production before he becomes a valuable fantasy asset. Heading into the season, Toney should be viewed around the WR40 range.