After a heartbreaking loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday Night Football, the Green Bay Packers enter their bye weeks 2-3.
The team will be considering a number of ways to strengthen their roster as they look to the future.
It’s a fact, though, that the Packers aren’t particularly interested in trading for one of their young players because they like them so much.
However, the Packers may consider trading for a number of veterans before the 2023 trade deadline.
Edge rusher Preston Smith is one of these athletes.
Austin Krueger, a recent Lombardi Avenue contributor, suggested that the Packers might acquire a renowned safety in exchange for the veteran edge rusher.
Preston Smith would be sent to the Arizona Cardinals in exchange for safety Budda Baker in a trade proposed by the Green Bay Packers.
The Packers’ two biggest needs, according to Krueger’s article, are on the defensive line and offensive line.
In part because of his team-friendly contract, he also names Smith as Green Bay’s most tradeable veteran.
While he offers up a number of safeties and offensive linemen that could be acquired in exchange for Smith, he says that Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker would be a “big swing:”.
“Although I wouldn’t anticipate it, the Packers might decide to take a risk by pairing Preston with draft picks to sign a player who will start in his place and serve as a long-term solution.
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LB Jonah Williams, S Jeremy Chinn, S Tre’von Moehrig, DB Jalen Mills, OG/C James Daniels are all potential trade targets.
S Budda Baker, big swing.
Packers supporters have long coveted Baker, a safety who has made the Pro Bowl five times.
However, is he really a better option for the team in 2023, and would Green Bay benefit from that trade beyond this season?
Compared to Rudy Ford and Darnell Savage, how does Budda Baker stack up?
Simply put, Baker and the Packers’ starting safeties in 2023 are not comparable. This is due to Baker’s injury reserve status, which he has had since September 18, which is the second week of the season.
He has a hamstring injury.
It would not be fair to compare Baker to Rudy Ford and Darnell Savage because he has only played in a few games.
For those who are interested, here is a comparison of Baker’s 2022 PFF grades with those of Savage and Ford’s 2023 PFF grades.
Baker (2022) received the following defensive grades: 73.7 overall defense; 80.2 run defense; 66.5 tackling; 59.0 pass rush; and 69.1 coverage.
Savage (2023): 59.5 for overall defense, 73.8 for run defense, 63.1 for tackling, 52.2 for pass rush, and 54.0 for coverage.
Ford (2023): 73.7 overall defensive grade; 67.3 run defense grade; 81.7 tackling grade; 58.0 pass rush grade; 74.0 coverage grade.
Even though Baker is better at run defense and Ford is better at pass defense, Baker and Ford have very similar grades.
However, Baker played in the Pro Bowl the previous year. Ford is enjoying a good year.
Obviously, Baker would be a better option than Savage, but only if he could maintain his level of performance from the previous year.
He can absolutely return and continue to play at a high level for the remainder of the season, but there is the contract to consider.
After the season, Budda Baker will be a free agent.
The four-year, $59 million contract Baker signed with the Cardinals in 2020 is now in its final year.
He will, of course, only serve as a rental for whichever team trades for him as a result of this.
On the one hand, that implies that the Cardinals shouldn’t be asking for too much for him.
Smith won’t likely need to be made available by Green Bay in order for that trade to go through.
For any playoff contenders looking to improve their safety room, Baker will be a hot commodity on the trade market. Even if the Packers make Smith available, a team offering early draft picks might outbid them.
Offering Smith in exchange for Baker would be a significant swing, but it is not the kind of significant swing that a team going through transition should make.
Baker has little to nothing to contribute to the Packers’ long-term plans because he won’t be under contract after this season. Green Bay simply won’t try to make the trade.