With Washington adding several new members to the defensive end room this offseason Toney’s release isn’t necessarily a surprise even though he had shown some promise in the years prior to his suspension.

Toney was part of a solid Penn State alum presence in the locker room and spent both the 2021 and 22 seasons playing for the team.

In that time he appeared in 26 games making one start and tallying 1.5 sacks with three quarterback hits.

He got his most extensive playing time on defense in his rookie 2021 season appearing on 118 defensive snaps but played mostly special teams in 2022 with 318 reps compared to just 51 for then defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio.

Toney was a seventh round pick of the 2021 NFL Draft by Washington and was the 17th defensive end taken in the selection meeting that year.

He’s the third member of the Commanders’ 2021 draft class to depart the team following William Bradley-King who is now with the New England Patriots and long snapper Camaron Cheeseman who was released last season after struggling for much of the year.

Seven of the 10 players selected that year are still with the team as of now with linebacker Jamin Davis leading the group as the first round pick while offensive lineman Sam Cosmi has been the most consistently successful member of that class.

With Toney’s departure Wahington now has eight defensive ends currently on its roster.

Published Apr 22, 2024
David Harrison
DAVID HARRISON

David Harrison has covered the NFL since 2015 as a digital content creator in both written and audio media. He is the host of Locked On Commanders and a graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. His previous career was as a Military Working Dog Handler for the United States Army. Contact David via email at david.w.harrison82@gmail.com or on Twitter @DHarrison82.