The Buffalo Bills were the most frequently discussed landing spot for Arizona Cardinals star safety Budda Baker leading up to the trade deadline. Buffalo did make a splash at safety, but it ultimately came in the form of the Tennessee Titans' Amani Hooker.
Buffalo lands Hooker and a fifth-round pick in exchange for a second-round pick. But as NFL insider Jordan Schultz reports, that wasn't for a lack of trying on the Bills' end to acquire Baker. Schultz says that the Bills made a "very strong push" for Baker before landing on Hooker.
"Arizona gave off the impression they don’t want to trade a franchise icon - despite a lost season - and Buffalo eventually got a deal done in Tennessee," Schultz added on X.
Can't blame the Cardinals for wanting to keep Budda Baker
It's understandable that GM Monti Ossenfort is reluctant to trade Baker despite it already shaping up to be another lost season in The Valley. Baker is the closest thing the Cardinals have to the Phoenix Suns' superstar, Devin Booker, keeping things stable through the ups and downs.
That leadership remains invaluable despite the losses as the Cardinals look to establish a new winning culture under first-year head coach Mike LaFleur. Trading veterans for picks certainly helps Arizona achieve that goal, which is why they should take a less firm stance on Josh Sweat.
It makes more sense for the Cardinals to ship someone like Sweat, who has previously requested a trade and is expected to want a new deal this offseason. Or even Zaven Collins, who is set to hit free agency, and Arizona should look to turn him into future assets rather than risk letting him walk for nothing.
But just because the Cardinals are rebuilding doesn't mean they have to trade all of their veterans. They at least need a foundation to build off of, and there's no better piece to help achieve that than Baker, the eight-time Pro Bowler.
Arizona is already in a good position as far as draft picks go. They picked up another second-round pick in the Marvin Harrison Jr. trade with the Houston Texans. More recently, they jumped from the fifth to the fourth round in the Jacoby Brissett trade with the Baltimore Ravens. That's a step in the right direction, but Arizona also needs to keep prioritizing how these picks turn out on the other side.
Draft picks are a hypothetical thing that materialize into these players that the Cardinals still need to put in a position to succeed, and having players like Baker around is key for establishing that culture. Ossenfort doesn't have the best track record either when it comes to hitting on these picks, which makes it all the more important for Arizona to have a strong enough infrastructure in place.
They also can't afford to lose many more defensive pieces, considering they already rank 31st in opponent points per game (28.3). Trading veterans for picks will help address those multiple roster flaws long term, but the Cardinals should do that with pieces like Sweat. Baker is the face of this defense, and fortunately Arizona seems to understand that even a contender like Buffalo can't put a price on that.
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