The Green Bay Packers front office is surely paying attention to a recent update on a safety that has been linked to the team as a possible trade target this offseason. The Packers still have yet to name the safety that will be slotted opposite of Darnell Savage this season.
The Packers were not able to re-sign a 2022 team captain, Adrian Amos. The Packers brought in former Houston Texans safety Jonathan Owens in free agency, but he’s behind Rudy Ford on the depth chart following OTAs.
The Packers have been named as a possible destination for Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker this offseason. The Cardinals are in rebuild mode during the same offseason Baker, a two-time All-Pro, wants more money. Baker returned for the Cardinals’ mandatory minicamp this June, but there was still skepticism about his eagerness to attend training camp next month.
NFL News: Update on Green Bay Packers trade target, Budda Baker
According to Mike Garafolo with the NFL Network, Baker plans to be at the Cardinals training camp. But his agent stressed that Baker’s hope is that he will be practicing with a new contract. Here’s the analysis via NFL.com:
“The five-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro hopes he’ll be doing so with a contract that pays him fairly for what he brings to the table, NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported Friday on Good Morning Football, per Baker’s agent, David Mulugheta.
In terms of what Baker feels is a fair price, Mulugheta told Garafolo he’s not asking to be “the highest-paid safety,” but instead desires an extension that proves the Cardinals see him as a “long-term part of their future plans.”
As it stands, Baker is the seventh-highest-paid safety on a per-year basis with an average annual salary of $14.75 million. That price tag stems from a four-year, $59 million extension he signed in 2020, which at the time did reset the market by making him the NFL’s highest-paid at his position.”
Packers fans want to hear that
You want to hear this if you’re a Packers fan wanting to see Baker in Green Bay. The Cardinals’ front office and Baker’s camp does not seem much closer than where they were this spring. Baker’s agent appears to be giving the Cardinals’ front office a veiled threat about Baker’s availability in training camp if he doesn’t get a contract in the next few weeks.
The Cardinals could decide they don’t need the distraction in head coach Jonathan Gannon’s first season. The Packers could stand to make an offer that would establish Green Bay as one of the best secondaries in the league.
But they’ll have to pay Baker for it.
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