Budda Baker is an all-action safety for the Arizona Cardinals and is one of the best at his position in the entire NFL. An exocet missile of a human being whose job is to seek out and destroy ball-carriers, #3 has been a fan favourite in the desert since being drafted in 2017, endearing himself to the Red Sea faithful with his bone-shuddering tackles and never say die attitude.

However, it was a single movement, a tap of a thumb to tweet out a GIF taken from The Last Dance where Michael Jordan describes being ignored by then-Supersonics coach George Karl, to send Cardinals fans shuddering themselves.

The “it became personal with me” tagline from the GIF that hinted at Baker’s unhappiness was soon compounded by a minor scrubbing of his social media account, reports of a trade request and discussions about contract improvements.

This uneasy through line continued during the draft, optional team work and minicamps but was finally laid to rest last week when Baker reported to training camp as he’d stated would be the case months prior. Baker’s check-in at camp was swiftly followed by news of an improved deal for the safety.

This was first reported as being worth $2.4m in bonuses and incentives along with a $300k signing bonus. Howard Balzer published a more detailed and accurate breakdown on https://gophnx.com/2023/07/28/cardinals-baker-brings-the-juice-with-adjusted-contract-phnx-has-the-actual-details/

It was welcome news that Baker, his representatives and the Cardinals were able to come to a grown up resolution that represents the best outcome for all parties.

Monti Ossenfort could have taken a hard-line approach by refusing to budge to discourage other players from “throwing their toys out of the pram” to get what they want but doing that would’ve potentially frozen out and pissed off one of the only star players on the roster.

There was also a chance that Ossenfort would cave in to the trade demand to free up more cap space for when this team is in a better position to contend.

Budda could have played hardball over the specific amounts that he wanted adding to his contract or demanded an extension but that would have kept him away from the football field.

Instead, all sides came together and found common ground at a critical time. That is the best outcome because Budda Baker is the heart and soul of the Arizona Cardinals.

The 27-year-old is the beating heart of the defence, the soul of the locker room and the flag bearer for what this organisation wants to be. As Jonathan Gannon said “he plays the game in my opinion, how the game should be played”.

This is a man who caught his first career interception against the Dallas Cowboys while sporting a cast to protect a surgically-repaired thumb. This is a man who sealed a win against the Rams last year with an interception A WEEK after suffering a high ankle sprain and who battled through a fractured shoulder in what was essentially a meaningless game against Tampa Bay in December.

As a UK-based fan, staying up to watch Cardinals games means going to sleep anywhere between 1 and 4am, resulting in 2 or 3 hours of rest before the shrill of my alarm echoes in a work day. Having someone like Budda Baker on the field makes those sleep deprived work shifts worthwhile.

The way Ron Wolfley bellows his name after a crunching tackle or his Shawn Michaels-esque kip-up have become hallmarks of gameday.

When #3 stood at the podium to speak with the media in the wake of his improved deal, he said “I love Arizona, I love Arizona fans”. From anyone else, that could be hand waved as a cliché or “player speak”. With Budda, it’s genuine because he proves it every single game.

Despite being one of the smaller players on the field, Baker constantly clatters through larger stronger opponents, putting the team before his own wellbeing, standing as one of the most ferocious and talented tacklers in the league. It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog after all.

The five-time Pro Bowler is a dominant force who posted the 7th highest amount of tackles (111) amongst safeties last year, has been in the top 5 at the position for interceptions for the past 3 years and has 100 more cumulative tackles than any safety in the past five years.

The safety inspires and holds his teammates accountable. D.J. Humphries told reporters this week that “seeing him be himself makes me want to elevate because you can’t watch a guy like that on the field and not go out and try to play to that level or one-up him”. The term surrender doesn’t come into his vocabulary while those who watched Hard Knocks will know how personally Baker takes a defeat.

While he can’t drag the franchise through hell single-handed, his never say die attitude and elite application represents a major cornerstone for Ossenfort, Gannon and the coaching staff to build upon.

They will certainly need him for this year because there’s a high likelihood that the Cardinals will have to walk through a torrential downpour before they can bask in the sunshine again. They know his unwavering spirit is invaluable to a team and a fan base that are about to embark on a treacherous climb up the NFL mountain.

The future represents murkier waters as the team only adjusted Baker’s contract rather than extending it beyond it’s current end point of the 2024 season.

Budda himself acknowledged that if he doesn’t play up to par “you’re not going to be playing in this league”. There’s nothing to suggest that the man who has made the Pro Bowl every year since 2019 is going to falter, in fact the former Washington Huskie claimed that he’s “bigger than ever, stronger than ever, faster and quicker”. That should terrify opposition teams.

If he can deliver on the field again or go to another level, Budda Baker will get what he deserves whether that’s in the desert or elsewhere. Then the ball will be in Monti’s court and he’ll have to back up some of the first words he spoke as General Manager in Janaury when he noted that “Budda Baker represents everything that we want this organisation to be”.

This organisation would be unrecognisable without it’s heart and soul.

Photo Credits: Arizona Cardinals