The Pittsburgh Steelers won’t see the Cleveland Browns the rest of this season. Neither will Kadarius Toney. After an ugly outing that helped Pittsburgh prevail Sunday afternoon, the Browns waived Toney. It was one of several roster moves the team made Tuesday, including putting CB Greg Newsome II on injured reserve.
Signed to the team’s practice squad in early September, Toney bounced on and off the Active/Inactive roster before officially being added to the team’s 53-man roster ahead of Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh. He immediately squandered the chance. Though he had a couple notable punt returns, his mistakes made the headlines. On one return, Toney was flagged for taunting after throwing the ball at Steelers WR Ben Skowronek. On his next chance, Toney muffed the ball with Skowronek recovering it.
A first-round pick of the New York Giants in 2021, Toney might be running out of NFL chances. The Browns were already his third team after wearing out his welcomes with the Giants and Kansas City Chiefs. Known for being a headache on and off the field, the Giants traded him 18 months after drafting him. Toney produced for the Chiefs, but his time ended in bizarre fashion, claiming Kansas City falsely listed him as injured during its Super Bowl run. He was released this August.
The Browns attempted to use Toney in a variety of ways. As a returner, runner, and receiver, he appeared in three games for the team this season. He logged two carries for minus-four yards and didn’t catch the only target thrown his way. He returned four punts for 44 yards but his gaffes against Pittsburgh sealed his fate.
Cleveland will finish the season trying to avoid last place in the AFC North, a mission made tougher by the Cincinnati Bengals’ Monday night win that came via a wild punt of that game’s own. Toney will finish the year hoping for another chance.
