Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney was guilty of a costly offside penalty in last Sunday’s loss to the Buffalo Bills, negating what would have been a potential game-winning touchdown and one of the best plays of the NFL season. He has also refused to take any accountability for the penalty and has been one of the many Chiefs that have tried to place the blame on the officiating crew.
The play saw Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce catch a pass in the middle of the field and then throw a lateral across the field to Toney, who proceeded to sprint into the end zone for an apparent touchdown. It was called back, however, because Toney was clearly lined up in the neutral zone.
This week, Toney said no matter how offside he was lined up, it was the official’s job to warn him that he was offside.
“Whether it was, an inch, two inches, whatever in front of the ball, the referee got a job to let me know,” Toney told reporters in the Chiefs’ locker room. “He didn’t make no effort. You watch the video, he didn’t make no effort to say anything about no alignment. So apparently, he wanted to do that regardless. But like I said, we’re just going back to the details and just make sure we fine print everything.”
Toney also said that the officials lied when they claimed they warned him and that they took away the greatest play that the greatest tight end ever made.
Whether they warned him or not, it is most definitely not the official’s job to tip a wide receiver that he is lined up offside. Toney can ask before the snap and they can tell him whether he is or is not, but Toney never did that.
The Chiefs made themselves look bad with the way head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes reacted, as each of them earned huge fines from the league for their postgame gripes. But Toney’s outright refusal to take any responsibility for his obvious mistake is an even worse look. Especially given how bad of a season he has had for the Chiefs.
