The Arizona Cardinals have reached an agreement with Budda Baker to make the two-time Pro Bowler the highest-paid safety in NFL history.
Baker, 24, will earn $59 million over four years on his extension, an average of $14.75 million per year. He is entering his fourth NFL season after being a second-round pick by the Cardinals in the 2017 NFL Draft.
You might ask why you should care as a Lions fan? Simply put, Baker’s new deal only raises the price tag for when the Lions look to lock up Tracy Walker.
Walker is actually ahead of Baker in terms of career path through the first two seasons. Here’s what each did in his second NFL campaign:
| G | Tackles | TFL | INTs | PDs | PFF overall | PFF coverage | |
| Baker | 14 | 102 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 65.9 | 60.6 |
| Walker | 13 | 103 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 73.5 | 76.0 |
Walker was Detroit’s third-round pick in 2018. That places him a year behind Baker on the contract extension front. Baker followed up that second year with a great third season, compiling 120 tackles and 6 PDs, though he’s still yet to pick off a pass through three NFL seasons.
If Walker progresses similarly in Detroit, the Lions might need to shell out the same kind of extension to their own young standout next offseason. The price tag is only going to go up if Walker, Detroit’s leading tackler in 2019, continues to excel.
