Kadarius Toney Speaks on Latest Injury, Reveals Plan For Return

Don’t write the book on Kadarius Toney just yet.

The New York Giants wide receiver spoke to the media for the first time in weeks on Thursday, Oct. 20, and opened up about the hamstring injuries that have kept him sidelined since Week 2. Toney provided a positive update and vowed to return this season.

Via Jordan Raanan of ESPN:

 

At one point before New York’s Week 5 trip to London to play the Green Bay Packers, Toney appeared to be making progress toward a comeback. But after practicing on a limited basis on Oct. 5, he suffered the second hamstring injury and has not participated in practice since.

“When you go hard, stuff happens,” Toney said, per Raanan’s tweet.

Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News described Toney’s media availability on Thursday as an “honest interview,” even though the injured wide receiver was unable to provide an exact timetable for his return.

“I feel pretty good,” Toney said, per ESPN. “Getting better every day. Ready to be out there when we can.”

Toney’s comments came on the heels of trade rumors that were recently reignited. You might remember that back in the spring, when the second-year wide receiver failed to show up for the start of voluntary Organized Team Activities (OTAs), trade rumors prompted him to report almost immediately to the Giants facility.

Now that there’s some buzz surrounding Toney on the trade market again, he’s suddenly opening up and promising to get back on the field this season.

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Kadarius Toney Spotted Sprinting on Side at Practice

Kadarius Toney hasn’t officially participated in practice this week, but he has been spotted doing some sprints on the side.

Here’s the report from Art Stapleton of The Record:

“Noticed Kadarius Toney sprinting on far field yesterday [and] moving well,” Stapleton wrote on Twitter on Oct. 20. “His status is, well, strange. Not sure how close he is to returning, but sure doesn’t look like he’s far. Was straight-line sprinting, though, and Toney’s game is certainly not straight line.”

The Giants made a curious decision to not put Toney on injured reserve, even though he’s already missed four games and is expected to miss more. The salary cap might be a big reason why. New York does not have a lot of money to spend in 2022 and may not want to incur the cost of another contract, which would come with signing a player to replace Toney on the active roster.

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Kadarius Toney’s Year 2 Impact in Serious Peril

Entering the 2022 season, Giants fans were hoping Kadarius Toney would make a Year 2 leap. That hope fades a little bit with each game that he misses.

Even when Toney was active on game day, his impact was extremely limited. In Week 1 against the Tennessee Titans, he only played two snaps. His role expanded some in Week 2 against the Carolina Panthers, but he still only played 38 percent of New York’s offensive snaps in that game.

In those two games, Toney only managed to catch two passes for a total of zero yards. He also had two rushing attempts for 23 yards.

Toney is running out of time to prove that he belongs in the NFL, let alone with the Giants.

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