Hours before the AFC championship game, Kadarius Toney went on a profane Instagram Live rant that was widely interpreted as the Kansas City wide receiver accusing the Chiefs of lying about his injuries.
Toney was inactive for the game with the Chiefs listing a hip injury and personal reasons that were presumably the birth of his daughter.
On Monday, with the Chiefs preparing to face the San Francisco 49ers, Toney claimed it was all a misunderstanding. Toney told NFL Network at Super Bowl opening night that the “footage got chopped up” and that he “never said anything about the Chiefs.”
“In the process, I got interrupted, so it got a mixed message behind it, I guess you can say, Toney said. “Then a lot of footage got chopped up in the release. So it made it look like I was attacking the one I love the most.
“I’d never attack the Chiefs, never said anything about the Chiefs. Who I was referring to was the Giants fans in my comments, in my comment box. Not even on my live recording, so you wouldn’t even know they were there.
“But I was referring to them which I shouldn’t have. I just wanted to go out there, get my message across as far as my injuries. But I shouldn’t have did that at the end of the day. I’m a man. I can accept my mistakes just like I accept my wins. I’m just moving past that right now. We’re here now, just trying to win.”
To be fair, there’s a lot left up to interpretation from the Instagram post in question. The clipwhich we won’t publish here because of the language, was shared via a dark screen. The comments that were clipped were done so without context.
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But it sure sounds like he was accusing somebody of saying he was hurt while he claimed that he wasn’t. And he mentions his hip, which was listed on the Chiefs injury report.
“Y’all reading all this cap-ass s***,” Toney said. “You really believe it. I don’t give a f***. … Man, that s***’s cap. I’m not hurt. None of that s***. … On God, not hurt. None of that. It goes from hip to ankle to this to that.”
If you’re not familiar, “cap,” in this context, loosely translates to lie.
Now Toney’s claiming that those comments were directed at Giants fans in his mentions, not the Chiefs. Prior to joining the Chiefs, Toney played a season-plus with the Giants, a stint that was frequently criticized.
Andy Reid responded to Toney’s comments
The comments made their way to head coach Andy Reid, who faced questions about them a day after Kansas City’s win over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC championship.
“He’s been on the injury report, so that’s not made up by any means,” Reid told reporters. “He’s been working through some things. He’ll be back out there.”
So will he be back out there for the Super Bowl? Toney’s two weeks into fatherhood. And he told NFL Network Monday night “I’m good” when he was asked about his health.
Toney’s listed as a starter on the Kansas City depth chart. He played a big role in Kansas City’s win in last season’s Super Bowl against the Philadelphia Eagles, scoring one touchdown and setting up another with a 65-yard punt return.
His penchant for drops have again made him a target of criticism this season. But as along as he’s healthy and everybody’s on good terms, all signs point to him suiting up for the Super Bowl after sitting the AFC championship.
