DECEMBER 22: Further details on the Baker extension are in, courtesy of PHNX’s Howard Balzer. Of the nearly $30MM in guarantees, $17.45MM is locked in at signing (including a $12.25MM signing bonus). Baker’s base salaries for 2025 and ’26 contain injury guarantees which will shift to full guarantees this March; no salary is locked in for the final year of the deal.
Baker is in line to collect a $1MM roster bonus on the fifth day of the league year for 2026 and ’27. The pact also includes offseason and per-game roster bonuses which could reach a combined total of $755K. Baker’s cap hit increased slightly for this year, but it will drop to $10.82MM next season before rising again ($19.23MM and $20.89MM) at the end of the pact.
DECEMBER 17: A year after asking for a trade, Budda Baker has remained a cornerstone Cardinal. This will lead to the perennial Pro Bowler passing on a trip to free agency.
The Cardinals have reached an agreement with Baker on a three-year, $54MM contract extension, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This is Baker’s third Arizona contract, and it places the All-Pro near the top of the market at safety. Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports had reported earlier this week that Baker and the Cards were discussing a deal.
Baker’s extension includes $30MM in guaranteed money and will keep him in Arizona through the 2027 season, per Schefter. The deal’s 18MM average annual value ranks fourth among active safeties and represents the largest third contract at the position in NFL history. The three players ahead of him in terms of AAV — Antoine Winfield Jr., Derwin James and Minkah Fitzpatrick — are on second contracts. Baker, 28, has done well to maintain top form at the end of his second.
Baker requested a trade away from the Cardinals in April 2023 due to frustration with his contract. The two sides came to a short-term resolution last July with additional guarantees and incentives on his existing contract, but his status as a pending free agent reignited trade speculation ahead of this year’s deadline.
The Cardinals never seemed to entertain the idea of moving Baker and have now solidified their commitment to their 2017 second-round pick. If he plays out his full extension, he will turn 32 years old at the end of his 11th season in Arizona, setting him up to retire as a Cardinal. While plenty of time remains between now and then, Baker has now excelled in three different defensive systems. He has done well to help the Jonathan Gannon regime produce some improvement this season.
The locker room leader, a 2017 second-round pick, has received Pro Bowl nods in each of the past five seasons. He is on pace for a career high in tackles, having racked up 142 in 14 games this season. He of five 100-plus-tackle seasons, Baker resides as a veteran presence on a team that has seen several quality defenders — J.J. Watt, Patrick Peterson, Chandler Jones, Byron Murphy and Zach Allen among them — either leave in free agency or retire over the past three years. Rather than let Baker follow that pack out the door, the Gannon-Monti Ossenfort regime will bet on the veteran to keep playing at a high level into his 30s.
Baker’s new contract reflects the NFL’s recent trend of rising safety contracts. Winfield’s offseason extension with the Buccaneers set new league records for total value, per-year average, total guarantees, and full guarantees, and the Ravens’ Kyle Hamilton could earn even more once he reaches extension eligibility in 2025.
The deal was negotiated by David Mulugheta of Athletes First, who recently lost wide receiver Tee Higgins as a client as he approaches extension talks with the Bengals.
