Cardinals Rule Budda Baker OUT vs Giants

Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker will not be playing this Sunday against the New York Giants, according to the team.

Baker was a late addition to the team's injury report on Friday after practicing fully on Wednesday and Thursday. He was labeled as "questionable" with a hamstring injury.

Inactives vs. Giants pic.twitter.com/9jyfDbFI5G
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 17, 2023

Baker raked in five total tackles in Week 1's loss to the Washington Commanders.

"Budda Baker is just about everywhere on the field. He’s an impressive player. You can tell he’s one of those guys that kind of gets everyone lined up, he flies to the football. He plays hard, he plays fast so he’s a guy that you’ve got to know where he’s at on every snap," said Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka.

K'Von Wallace is expected to take his place alongside Jalen Thompson on the backend of the defense.

New York head coach Brian Daboll also highlighted Baker during the week of practice.

"They had a defensive touchdown, another interception, another fumble recovery. They turned the ball over, they’re fast. (Cardinals safety) Budda (Baker), you’ve got to know where he’s at. He's a really good player. I thought they played a really good game, that first game against Washington."

Baker - a three-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl player - is arguably Arizona's top player on both sides of the ball.

After an offseason full of speculation following Baker's public trade demands, the Cardinals were able to reach a re-worked deal to ensure their defensive captain was taken care of heading into 2023.

Kelvin Beachum and Leki Fotu were the other questionable Cardinals heading into Sunday. Josh Woods was previously ruled out while L.J. Collier was placed on injured reserve.