It isn’t the NFL off-season unless a top talent requests a trade.
On Friday, Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker requested a trade, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Baker is the second star from the Cardinals to want a trade this off-season, joining wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
Team source: Budda Baker informed the Cardinals in February that he wanted to be traded or receive a new deal to make him the highest-paid safety.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 14, 2023
Baker has quickly become one of the league’s best safeties since he was a second-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. Baker, who turned 27 in January, has made five Pro Bowls and two All-Pro teams. Baker has seven interceptions and six forced fumbles throughout his career.
So far, few suitors have been announced for Baker. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler announced that the Philadelphia Eagles would be interested, but the buck stops there.
Now, could the Minnesota Vikings be interested? General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah hasn’t been afraid to get aggressive in making moves, and a trade for Baker could solve many of the Vikings’ problems in the secondary.
The Package
Safety trades are becoming a trend in the NFL.
The Pittsburgh Steelers were the trendsetters during the 2019 season, trading for then-Miami Dolphin Minkah Fitzpatrick. Less than a year later, the New York Jets traded Jamal Adams to the Seattle Seahawks for multiple first-round selections.
The Seahawks are the leaders of this trend because, during the 2019 NFL Draft, they also traded for Detroit Lions safety Quandre Diggs.
In total, the Seahawks have traded two first-round picks, a third-round pick, a fifth-round pick, and safety Bradley McDougald for their two starting safeties.
Here are all the major safety-related trades in recent years:
- 2019: The Seattle Seahawks trade a 5th-round pick to the Detroit Lions for safety Quandre Diggs and a 7th-round selection.
- 2019: The Pittsburgh Steelers trade a 1st-round pick, a 5th-round pick, and a 6th-round pick to the Miami Dolphins for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, a 4th-round pick, and a 7th-round pick.
- 2020: The Seattle Seahawks trade two first-round picks, a third-round pick, and safety Bradley McDougald to the New York Jets for safety Jamal Adams and a fourth-round pick.
- 2022: The Philadelphia Eagles trade a fifth-round pick and a sixth-round pick to the New Orleans Saints for safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and a seventh-round pick.
- 2023: The New York Jets trade a seventh-round pick to the Baltimore Ravens for safety Chuck Clark.
Given recent compensation, the team trading for Budda Baker will likely have to trade at least a first-round selection. Since Baker isn’t a free agent for another two years, the Vikings could also have to send a future draft pick, like a second-round pick, to the Cardinals.
The Financials
In 2020, the Arizona Cardinals and Budda Baker agreed to a four-year extension worth $59 million. At the time, Baker became the highest-paid safety in football, but other deals have made Baker the sixth-highest-paid safety in the league.
Baker is in the final two seasons of that extension, and whatever team trades for him will owe the safety $13.1 million this season and $14.2 million in 2024. Below are the terms of his current contract from Over The Cap.
The Vikings could make those numbers work, but it would require further cap gymnastics from Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. Currently, the Vikings are $1 million under the cap, and a Baker trade would push them over the cap by about $10 million.
The Vikings could solve that cap problem by trading edge rusher Za’Darius Smith for draft capital. Depending on the designation of the trade, the Vikings could save as much as $12 million against the cap, putting them back under the cap.
The Vikings could also restructure Baker’s contract, but those savings wouldn’t be enough individually. To get under the cap, the Vikings would also have to move running back Dalvin Cook (either through trade or release).
Whoever trades for Baker will likely give him his contract extension too. Derwin James is the league’s highest-paid safety, making $19 million annually. Baker’s next contract extension would likely reset the market and exceed $20 million a year, so let the buyer (the Vikings) beware.
However, Baker would not have to account for $20 million against the cap a season. Teams can easily manipulate cap hits, making the contract count less than the average value.
Baker's fit with the Vikings
The safety position is changing.
In the age of “positionless football,” safeties are being asked to do more than ever. The best in the league can guard tight ends and slot receivers, operate as a single-high safety, and even rush the passer. Most of the time, they’re playmakers who find ways to create turnovers and clean up most of the field.
Budda Baker is all of that and then some.
Baker has quickly become one of the league’s best safeties, and it almost comes as a surprise that he’s requested a trade. It’s even more of a surprise that the market hasn’t seemingly been unhinged.
In terms of his fit with Brian Flores, it’s not hard to see how Baker would fit within his defense.
While in Miami, the Vikings’ new defensive coordinator turned Jevon Holland into one of the league’s most versatile safeties, opening up the entire defense.
When Flores called cover 0 looks, Holland was often asked to be an additional pass rusher from the secondary. When he wasn’t rushing the passer, Holland was either the deep safety or was covering a tight end.
Baker is, in some ways, a souped-up Holland. He’s a legitimate blue-chip player that doesn’t often hit the market, and he can quite literally play all over the field.
I don't know how it could work financially, but if the Patriots added Budda Baker to an already-stacked safety group, offenses would literally have to tap out
Sorry just take your ball and go home https://t.co/wsIXRSCiVB pic.twitter.com/kh1CVGU6wO
— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) April 15, 2023
Adding Baker into the Vikings’ secondary would solve a lot of their problems. He’d be the heir to Harrison Smith and could even help solve the Vikings’ question marks at cornerback. Although he’s not a natural slot cornerback, Baker has proven he can be a high-level inside defender. Baker playing there could allow Byron Murphy and Andrew Booth Jr. to carve out full-time roles as boundary cornerbacks.
Budda Baker with the HUGE INT and a 90-yard return! #RedSea @Buddabaker32
📺: #SEAvsAZ on NBC
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/FSTZl0ocgC pic.twitter.com/zErIeXiklE— NFL (@NFL) October 26, 2020
The problem on the field would come in Baker’s fit with Harrison Smith for the near future. Although Smith’s time in Minnesota is likely coming to a close, there’s no reason to kick him to the curb, in a sense. However, there’s likely a way that Flores could give Smith, Baker, and Lewis Cine an ample number of snaps.
Off the field, the questions become more prevalent. The Minnesota Vikings aren’t exactly a safety away from competing, and giving up a lot of assets could set the timeline back a little bit. Those assets might also be better served in the Vikings’ pursuit of a quarterback of the future.
To be blunt, the Vikings should only pursue Baker if the Cardinals’ asking price is affordable. The Vikings aren’t in a position to trade multiple valuable draft selections for Baker with the other needs on their roster. The trade becomes even more complicated if it involves future draft picks. The Vikings should prioritize finding a quarterback and might need future assets to help move up the board.
If the price is right, though, the Vikings should do everything in their power to get Baker. Finding the next Budda Baker is a daunting task that’s not easily accomplishable, and he’s the kind of player that can elevate the entire roster.
