KC Chiefs' Travis Kelce Reveals Possible Timeline for Kadarius Toney Injury

Kansas City's star tight end addressed his teammate's knee injury following Monday's practice.

Jan 7, 2023; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney (19) celebrates his touchdown scored against the Las Vegas Raiders with tight end Travis Kelce (87) during the first half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

With the Kansas City Chiefs being in the early stages of their 2023 training camp at Missouri Western State University's campus in St. Joseph, MO, there's still plenty to sort out as far as the depth chart and roster are concerned. The injury front also throws more challenges into the fold, and wide receiver Kadarius Toney's knee has been a hot topic since open practices began for the entire team on Sunday morning.

During a warm-up drill on Sunday, the third-year wideout suffered a knee injury that was described by head coach Andy Reid as a "tweak" later that morning. No further context was provided for the rest of the day, although it was known at the time that the ailment caused Toney to leave practice early. He was then inactive for Monday morning's practice, raising even more concern. 

Unfortunately for the Chiefs and their fans, Monday comments from tight end Travis Kelce don't exactly add a great deal of positivity. While Kelce seemed optimistic that Toney will be back either for the start or the early stages of the 2023 regular season, that timeline doesn't jive with something like a minor knee tweak. Here's Kelce's full quote from media availability: 

"We're going to miss KT's ability to make a play out of nowhere and just kind of gain that momentum. He was that piece for us in the Super Bowl, he was that piece for us throughout the season last year. Just getting that thing right, we've got all the confidence in the world in our training staff here to get him ready either by [the] season or early on in the season. We've got our fingers crossed that we can get him back as soon as possible. It's just letting him heal up and we'll take care of the load until he gets back. KT ain't going anywhere, man. We miss that guy already."

Of course, it's still early and there has been no official diagnosis from the Chiefs in regards to Toney's exact injury. The situation Kelce proposed may not end up being the case once Kansas City's medical team determines a finalized course of action, but his early thoughts aren't what many expected to hear. With that said, there's a clear level of trust that the staff will do everything possible to get Toney back out on the field as soon as he's healthy enough and ready to do so. Toney himself tweeted his praise of assistant athletic trainer Julie Frymyer on Monday morning:

UPDATE: Toney underwent surgery for his knee on Tuesday morning. For more information, click here. 

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