The Kansas City Chiefs took a gamble on Kadarius Toney at the 2022 trade deadline and it's been pretty hit and miss for them. On the bright side, he scored a touchdown in Super Bowl LVII and had a massive punt return that helped put the Chiefs in business in their eventual victory as well.
On the other hand, he's been injured frequently and has stirred up some drama, especially in recent weeks. While it wouldn't save the Chiefs any money to move on from Toney, it wouldn't be shocking if the two parted ways due to the drama that Toney has brought to the team since arriving.
If the Chiefs wanted to replace Toney, the easiest way to do so would be in the draft. They found Rashee Rice in the second round of the 2023 draft so why not look for another young gun to help out Patrick Mahomes?
If the Chiefs decide to turn to free agency, however, some big names could be available (Mike Evans, Tee Higgins, Michael Pittman Jr., to name a few). There are also some enticing guys who aren't going to be nearly as expensive. Brad Spielberger of PFF has the Chiefs targeting one of those less-expensive options.
PFF says that Kansas City Chiefs could be landing spot for Calvin Ridley
Ridley and Toney are similar in that they're both former first-round wide receivers out of SEC colleges who are now on their second teams. The difference is that Ridley stayed mostly healthy during his Falcons tenure and had at least 800 receiving yards in each of his first three seasons.
Toney only played for the Giants for one year and appeared in just 10 games while tallying 420 yards. His numbers in KC haven't been anything special either.
Ridley served a one-year suspension in 2022 and then joined the Jaguars for the 2023 season. He had over 1,000 yards receiving with eight touchdowns during his return to the NFL and could make a lot of noise in Kansas City.
"Kansas City has shown time and time again that it isn’t going to make free agent splashes on older players, but perhaps the Chiefs buy low on a very good player who fits their play style profile as a really good separator with late hands. Every single mock draft from now until Round 1 of the 2024 Draft kicks off will have Kansas City taking one of the many great wide receivers in this class, but now picking either 31st or 32nd overall, the Chiefs address their biggest need in March and still leave the door open for a rookie."Brad Spielberger
This could be a good landing spot for Ridley. He'd be playing with a Super Bowl favorite, catching passes from Patrick Mahomes, learning from Andy Reid, and would be one of the top targets in an otherwise mediocre wide receiver room.
Ridley is projected to earn a two-year contract worth $32.5 million with an annual salary of $16.25 million. This could be doable for the Chiefs and they wouldn't have to break the bank for a new weapon for their franchise signal-caller.