Former Florida Gators first-round pick placed on NFL trading block

The New York Giants selected wide receiver Kadarius Toney out of Florida with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Now, just a year later, the Giants have reportedly placed Toney on the trade block. Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reported the development on Friday afternoon.

Toney’s rookie season with the Giants was filled with ups and downs. He played sparingly over the first three weeks of the season, but then had a great performance in the Giants victory over the Saints in Week 4, bringing in six of nine targets for 78 yards. Then, in a loss to the Cowboys in Week 5, Toney caught 10 of his 13 passes for 189 yards. But in the fourth quarter of the loss to the Cowboys, Toney threw a punch and was ejected and later fined by the league.

Toney only played in five more games through the remainder of the season after throwing that punch in his career-best day. The former first-round pick dealt with an ankle injury later in the year that forced him to miss a significant amount of time.

Overall, Toney played in 10 games with four starts for the Giants as a rookie. He brought in 39 receptions on 57 targets for 420 yards with zero touchdowns.

Toney was a star at Florida before joining the Giants

In four years of college football at Florida, Toney caught 120 passes for 1,590 yards and 12 touchdowns, also rushing for 580 yards and two scores. His best season came as a senior in 2020, where he caught 70 passes for 984 yards and ten touchdowns, also rushing 19 times for 161 yards and one touchdown.

But after showing flashes early on as a rookie with the Giants, Toney’s rookie season left a lot on the table. In an offense that was in need of weapons with multiple starters dealing with injuries, Toney was unable to stay on the field and contribute. And after adding in his punch and ejection, frustrations obviously boiled over through the year.

Now, it appears that Toney’s days with the Giants could be numbered. Even though it’s not a guarantee that he gets moved, being placed on the trading block a year after being taken in the first round probably says enough.