Folks, it’s never a good sign when your first round draft pick isn’t playing in the preseason or in training camp. But should Giants fans be hitting the panic button on Kadarius Toney calling him a bust??
Hell no!
Toney has had a relatively tough offseason. He started training camp off by getting COVID-19 which potentially hit him pretty hard and then he lost his grandmother earlier this month who he was really close to. That’s a lot to take for a twenty-two year old.
The reality of the situation is that Toney is a very raw prospect. There’s a chance that he may not play a ton to start out this season. Obviously the start of Toney’s career has been met with some unexpected challenges but it’s nothing that he can’t get over.
I’m not too old to remember that the last wide receiver the Giants took in the first round didn’t practice or play in the season’s first four games and he turned out just fine.
My biggest concern for Toney is if the Giants will be able to carve out a role for him that suits his skillset with Jason Garrett as the offensive coordinator. Toney isn’t going to line up and catch passes at a high volume right away. He will need to be used creatively and I’m not so sure that Jason Garrett is the guy to bring out the best in someone like him.
The moral of the story is until Toney plays in some games, let’s give him a break.