NFL teams
Adam Teicher, ESPN Staff Writer 1y

Chiefs WR Kadarius Toney 'working towards' playing vs. Titans

NFL, Kansas City Chiefs

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs are preparing newly acquired wide receiver Kadarius Toney to play in Sunday night's game against the Tennessee Titans.

"We'll try to work him in," Reid said Wednesday shortly before Toney practiced with the Chiefs for the first time. "He's a smart kid. He's been with us a couple days, so we've had a chance to talk to him. He picks things up fairly easily."

The Chiefs traded last week with the New York Giants for Toney.

"I'm working towards [playing]," Toney said. "I'm very eager to go out there and be the player I am."

The Chiefs lead the league in scoring at almost 32 points per game. Their top wide receivers have played well lately, with JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling going over 100 yards and Mecole Hardman scoring three touchdowns against the San Francisco 49ersĀ in the Chiefs' most recent game.

But quarterback Patrick Mahomes said the Chiefs welcomed the addition of another possible playmaker.

"Hopefully be able to use his talent to help take this offense even to another level," Mahomes said. "He's super excited. You can tell how much he's ready to get out there and play. Everybody sees [the] physical gifts he has. He's bigger than I thought, and he's done a good job of whenever he had chances to catch the ball and being able to make people miss in space."

Toney said he wouldn't look back to figure out why things didn't work out for him with the Giants, who drafted him in the first round last year. But he said he was looking forward to playing with the Chiefs, who looked into drafting him in 2021 before the Giants got to him first.

"I was kind of shocked," Toney said of the trade. "I'm just looking forward to the opportunity available here.

"I would say it feels good [to be] pretty much wanted by a team, and I think the history probably goes back way a little further than that. Before I even came into the league, they really wanted me here."

On playing with Mahomes, Toney said, "I really just like seeing him from the TV. I know he commanded the huddle, he commanded his offense. So I know at the end of the day I've got to make sure I'm disciplined enough to know where I've got to be and when I got to be there and just let him do the rest because I know his talent. He can put it wherever you want."

The Chiefs continued their pursuit of Toney even after he went to the Giants. As the Chiefs were rebuilding their wide receiving group after trading Tyreek Hill in the spring, general manager Brett Veach went to Mahomes to tell him the Chiefs were working on a trade for Toney.

No trade happened then, and the Chiefs signed Smith-Schuster and Valdes-Scantling. But trade talks between the Chiefs and Giants picked up recently.

"[Veach] came to me, I think after the San Francisco game, and kind of said, 'This might happen during the bye.' Luckily enough for us, it did happen and we were able to get another talented playmaker in that receiving room."

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