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3 Teams That Should Trade For Budda BakerJoe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NFL

3 Teams That Should Trade For Budda Baker

The Arizona Cardinals dropped to 2-4 following Sunday's blowout defeat to the Green Bay Packers. General manager Monti Ossenfort should be a seller at the upcoming NFL trade deadline (Nov. 5). With building blocks like Kyler Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. on the roster, it's clear that the Cardinals still need draft capital and financial flexibility to prepare for 2025 and beyond.

Veteran safety Budda Baker is by far Ossenfort's most intriguing asset. Unsigned beyond this season, extension talks did not progress between Baker and the Cardinals throughout the offseason. The six-time Pro Bowler has recorded a fourth-best-in-the-NFL 60 tackles this year and would improve any secondary in the league.

The Cardinals are unlikely to re-sign Baker in the offseason. Before losing him for nothing, we've identified three potential landing spots via trade.

Minnesota Vikings

The 5-0 Minnesota Vikings join the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs as the remaining undefeated teams. Brian Flores has been an excellent defensive coordinator for the Vikings this season, but the pass defense has been a weakness. They're currently allowing a 30th-ranked 263 passing yards per game.

The aging Harrison Smith is still competing at a high level. Camryn Bynum has developed into a starting-caliber safety opposite him, but acquiring a chess piece like Baker would allow Flores to deploy more three-safety sets. One of the most creative defensive minds in the entire league, Flores would understand how to utilize Baker's skill set around the line of scrimmage to help his struggling back end.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles' defensive struggles have carried over from last season. They allowed the Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers to score 30-plus, and have really only impressed when playing a struggling offense like the Cleveland Browns. General manager Howie Roseman must improve this secondary if he possesses legitimate postseason aspirations this season.

Head coach Nick Sirianni is currently fielding the league's 21st-ranked pass defense. Sophomore safety Sydney Brown just had his practice window activated after missing the start of the regular season with a knee injury suffered last year. There's been little to no depth behind Reed Blankenship and C.J. Gardner-Johnson. Acquiring Baker would remove some of the pressure that's being placed on rookies Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean right now.

Dallas Cowboys

What has happened to the Dallas Cowboys defense? They currently rank 30th in scoring (28.0) and 26th against the run (143.2). Mike Zimmer's struggling unit is also middling (16th) against the pass (213.3). The Cowboys were just embarrassed 47-9 by the Detroit Lions, and previously allowed the New Orleans Saints and Baltimore Ravens to score 44 and 28 points respectively.

I don't believe Jerry Jones and the Cowboys are prepared to punt this season. They currently possess $21.7 million in cap space, according to Spotrac. After struggling financially earlier this offseason, they're well set up next summer as well. Their starting safeties have allowed a combined 17 receptions on 24 targets with individual passer ratings over 118. Baker would drastically improve this unit.

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