By Dave Holcomb
SouthernPigskin.com

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Kadarius Toney may prove to be as important as any to helping Daniel Jones realize his full potential.

The New York Giants were busy during the beginning of free agency in March. At just the skilled positions, the team signed wide receivers Kenny Golladay and John Ross, running back Devontae Booker and tight end Kyle Rudolph.

Adding skilled-position players to help quarterback Daniel Jones take another step forward isnt at all surprising. The former No. 6 overall selection has won just eight games in two seasons and is entering the pivotal third year of his career.

So despite all those newly-signed veterans, the Giants still drafted wide receiver Kadarius Toney at No. 20 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. Of all the additions, Toney may prove to be as important as any to helping Jones realize his full potential.

Although the fourth of five wide receivers taken in the first round, Toney possesses some of the best playmaking ability of any skilled position player from the class. His size and route-running ability kept him from being a Top 10 pick like JaMarr Chase, Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith, but Toney could arguably make just as big of an impact as a rookie if the Giants use him correctly.

The role he appears best suited for would be out of the slot. His draft profile at NFL.com labeled his cability to wiggle and elude or break the tackled as one of his best strengths. At 6-feet tall and 193 pounds (other websites list him at 5-foot-11), his body type fits in the role of a slot receiver too.

cHis routes can look like one-on-one isolation basketball moves at times, but he has the ability to make instant cuts and break his routes off sharply,d wrote NFL analyst Lance Zierlein. cHe could become a much more creative and consistent route runner in due time.

Zierlein added, c[He] is likely to do his best work in a scheme that allows him plenty of run-after-catch opportunities.d

Receivers best suited for the slot arent generally viewed as great selections to make in the first round. But slot receivers seemingly contribute more every year in the NFL because of the increased volume of passes. A little more than two years ago, Julian Edelman, who played a lot out of the slot in his career, won Super Bowl MVP.

Thats not to say Toney is going to be the next Edelman. But Toney has the potential to make a big impact for his team like Edelman did. Thats especially the case with Jones as his quarterback.

One of the areas Jones has struggled the most early in his NFL career is on deep throws. Hes averaged just 6.6 yards per pass through two seasons. Last year, his 6.6 yards per attempt average was 26th among eligible quarterbacks in the NFL.

Toney isnt necessarily going to be a deep-ball target for Jones, at least not immediately, but what Toney can do is give Jones easy targets on short, quick throws. Jones has completed 62.5% of his passes in 2020, which was 31st in the league. That percentage should increase with easy completions going to Toney.

At that point, Toney will be able to make things happen with his elusiveness in space. In a way, its an extension of the running game.

In 10 of his 11 games at Florida last fall, Toney reeled off at least one reception of more than 20 yards. Lots of those long catches were created from yards after the catch.

If Toney has the ability to break off similar type plays at the NFL level, then defenses will have to inch their safeties a little bit closer to the line of scrimmage to stop the quick-passing attack. Should that happen, then things could open up for Jones and his other receivers such as Golladay down the field.

Toney should contribute as a returner as well. He averaged at least 21 yards per kickoff return each of his last three years at Florida, and as a senior, Toney returned a punt for a touchdown. The Giants have returned one punt for a touchdown over the last 11 seasons.

So while he might not be the household name like the other top receivers from the 2021 draft class, Toney has the ability to make an impact on both offense and special teams for the Giants.

For Jones sake, the Giants hope that impact is felt immediately this September.