Cardinals Dealt Last Minute Blow Before 49ers Game
*Update: In a good turn events for Arizona, Baker will be active today*
ARIZONA -- In a late addition to the injury report, the Arizona Cardinals are adding Budda Baker as questionable due to illness. The Cardinals host the San Francisco 49ers later today at State Farm Stadium.
It's unclear exactly what is wrong with Baker. This story will be updated if/when more info becomes available.
Baker has played in eight games thus far in 2023 and spent some time on injured reserve after suffering a hamstring injury in mid-September.
The Cardinals are just 3-10 on the season and have suffered a barrage of injuries on both sides of the ball. Baker has 58 tackles to his name.
It's obviously not great news for an Arizona team looking to potentially upset the 49ers, who have won their last five games. They have already clinched a playoff spot and can secure the NFC West with a win over Arizona later today.
"I thought they were real tough at the beginning of the year. I thought we had to play flawless on offense to beat them, but that was a real tight game. Since then they have how many ever games it is, nine more games of reps. They're playing very hard, they're playing together. They've added some really good players, especially [Arizona Cardinals S] Budda [Baker] who they didn't have," said 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan earlier this week.
George Kittle added:
"They have a new coaching staff, but if you watch the tape right now, they are flying around and they're playing the defense that their coach wants them to play and they're playing it at a really high level. It's completely different from almost any other defense you see in the league, how they're doing all their coverages, how they're using Budda Baker. And then when you throw a guy like Budda into their defense and they're all on it, they're playing really really good defense."
Also listed as questionable are Krys Barnes (ribs), Marquise Brown (heel), Blake Gillikin (back), Geoff Swaim (back), Elijah Wilkinson (neck) and Michael Wilson (neck).
Official inactives are due 90 minutes before kickoff, which is slated for 2:05 PM Arizona time.
