Elite $59 Million Safety on Expiring Deal Dubbed Packers’ Top Trade Target
The Green Bay Packers haven’t shied away from making blockbuster trades over the past couple of offseasons, though they have often sold the big name in return for draft assets.
Green Bay could flip to the other side of the coin once free agency hits in March and make a move for a known name on a pricey deal, though perhaps one that doesn’t lock the organization into a pre-negotiated contract beyond 2024.
Bleacher Report’s Scouting Department on Monday, January 29, mapped out an offseason trade guide for the Packers, suggesting that Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker should be Green Bay’s top target.
Green Bay could potentially lose safeties Jonathan Owens, Christian Uphoff and Darnell Savage in free agency this year,” the scouts wrote. “Dealing for Arizona safety Budda Baker, who is entering the final year of his contract, could help reload the secondary quickly.”
Budda Baker Remains Among Elite NFL Safeties, Could Help Packers Make Another Deep Playoff Run
Baker is an elite safety. That word can be overused in the world of hypothetical trade proposals and free-agency predictions, but where Baker is concerned, it’s the only applicable adjective.
Arizona drafted the safety in 2017, and he promptly earned first-team All-Pro honors as a rookie. Across seven NFL seasons, Baker has landed a spot on one of the All-Pro teams three times as well as Pro-Bowl nods in six campaigns.
Baker signed a four-year, $59 million deal with the Cardinals in August 2020. He tried, unsuccessfully, to renegotiate his contract ahead of the 2023 season — demanding that Arizona either make him the NFL’s highest-paid safety or trade him elsewhere. The team did neither, and Baker ended up playing 12 games for the Cardinals and earning another Pro-Bowl trip.
