It’s that time of year once again! Football Absurdity will bring you a breakdown of every notable fantasy football-relevant player throughout June, July, and August. We continue with the wide receivers. Today, we take a look at a wide receiver whose 2021 was both the best of times and the blurst of times. Kadarius Toney had one of the biggest games for a wide receiver so early in his career, but then the Giants Giantsed it up and he failed to follow that up with anything impressive. Can a new coaching staff unlock Kadarius Toney, and is he worth that risk? Let’s take a look at his 2022 fantasy football player profile!
Kadarius Toney ADP and AAV:
Average Draft Position: WR49, 115 overall
Average Auction Value: $1.1
Kadarius Toney Statistics:
| Year | G | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yards | TD | Tgt/G | Rec/G | Rec% | Yds/Tgt | Yds/Rec |
| 2021 | 10 | 4 | 57 | 39 | 420 | 0 | 14.25 | 3.90 | 68.4% | 7.37 | 10.77 |
| Year | Std Pts | HPPR Pts | PPR Pts | Pts/G | HPPR Pts/G | PPR Pts/G | Pts/Tgt | HPPR Pts/Tgt | PPR Pts/Tgt |
| 2021 | 43.4 | 62.9 | 82.4 | 4.3 | 6.3 | 8.2 | 0.76 | 1.10 | 1.45 |
| Year | Air Yards | aDOT | YAC | YAC/Tgt | YAC/Rec | AYMS | Tgt MS |
| 2021 | 339 | 6.0 | 228 | 4.00 | 5.85 | 14% | 17% |
2022 Kadarius Toney Fantasy Football Overview:
There were some massive bits of “LOL Giants” surrounding Kadarius Toney in 2021. First, they took him 20th in the NFL Draft, with other wide receivers like Rashod Bateman, Elijah Moore, and Rondale Moore still on the board. This made the football Twitterati all a-twitter (hey that’s probably why they call it that!). Then, the Giants proceeded to just… not use Toney. Toney was active for the first three games of the season, but he totaled just five targets for four catches and fourteen yards. Then, he turned on the afterburners, totaling 16 catches for 267 yards the next two games, completely setting the fantasy football world ablaze. In response to this, he suffered an injury six snaps into the next game and then did not return to form upon his return, where he played over 50% of snaps in four games, but averaged just four catches for 26 yards.
So, with Brian Daboll coming to town from Buffalo, many hope and dream that Toney can take the next step in a new offense. They’re hanging everything on a wing and a prayer, because of the massive 10-catch, 189-yard game in week five of last season. People want to point to Daboll fully maximizing Stefon Diggs and Josh Allen as reasons for this. There are only two problems: Daniel Jones isn’t Josh Allen, and Kadarius Toney isn’t Stefon Diggs.
Diggs is a mercurial talent, but Toney takes that descriptor to the next level, as he suffered a preseason injury in training camp by wearing the wrong-sized shoes his rookie year, and struggled to learn the playbook, acted out in meetings, and that 10-catch, 189-yard game? The refs tossed him for throwing a punch. He also struggled to stay on the field, contracting COVID, a should injury, and an oblique injury. The Giants reportedly came close to bailing on Toney entirely, but have changed their tune. What should we do with him in our drafts, though?
2022 Kadarius Toney Fantasy Football Draft Strategy:
Kadarius Toney Salary Cap Value: $1
Draft Ranking: Find out for your league settings in a Beersheet!
From a talent perspective, it’s hard to find players with more upside at a great value than Toney. He’s $1.1 in salary cap drafts and WR49 (115 overall) in snake drafts. Toney is going at a great value for his talent level since nobody doubts that.
I am, however, doubting the Giants’ ability to maximize that talent level and their commitment to letting Toney work through whatever immature behavior he needs to get out (as evidenced by taking Wan’Dale Robinson in the draft). That’s where things get iffy for me: if the Giants might not want to keep Kadarius Toney around on their real-life NFL football team, why would I want to put Kadarius Toney on my fantasy football team? It’s a crowded wide receiver room learning a new scheme with a dog water quarterback and a player with known dedication issues. I don’t want this guy anywhere near my roster, value be damned. Just pretend like Kadarius Toney in 2022 is Kadarius Toney in his first three games with the Giants and ignore him.
Best Case Scenario:
Toney gets his head on straight and is a top-fifteen wide receiver.
Worst Case Scenario:
Toney purchases props from the ‘90s Disney flick, Little Giants, and tries to wear them on the field. Literally, nothing works, and he looks like Alice in Wonderland got lost in an armory before growing to massive proportions.
Check out all our 2022 player profiles, here.
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[Statistics are sourced from pro-football-reference.com, airyards.com, and ftnfantasy.com]
[Image Source: New York Giants on Twitter]
