Chiefs news: Kadarius Toney tries to move beyond controversial Instagram post

It's been a year to forget for Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney. What began with high expectations (impossibly so, if we're honest) has been interrupted by mental issues, impeded by physical ones, and capped by some drama. Why not, right?

The latest dust-up, in case you missed it, came courtesy of Kadarius Toney's Instagram account, upon which a video was shared featuring someone talking without any actual video feed (audio-only video, basically). That video was supposed to be Toney calling out the Chiefs for saying he's hurt when he's not among other complaints. It was also widely circulated on social media in and out of Chiefs circles.

It's hard to sort through what's real, but Kadarius Toney is trying to at least move on.

At the time, it seemed impossible to say with any certainty whether or not it was real. (Welcome to the future of information, folks!) Some fans believed it was an old video rant against the New York Giants being retooled or reused. Others found reasons to trust it and spread it as legitimate.

A few days later, Toney is back to walk the whole thing back by saying it was not his work. Instead, he says the clips have been altered. Toney even writes that the video "made it seem like I was attacking those I love." From there he says he could post longer video clips as evidence but he's "passed that."

Again, who knows?

It's possible that Toney is guilty or not guilty but that Chiefs brass had their way and said, "Want a ring? Behave. Stay quiet. Deal with this and then stop being a distraction." Then again if Toney was hacked or something, why not exonerate yourself completely by posting all you can?

If anything, the whole episode felt weird and out of character given how much the Chiefs seem to move Toney. From Travis Kelce to Andy Reid to Patrick Mahomes, everyone has spoken glowingly of him as a teammate even after he made significant mistakes this year that cost a win or two. If Toney has been treated this well while in K.C., why would he suddenly turn on them? And why now to distract the team before the biggest game of the year?