Details of Cardinals, Budda Baker Extension Revealed

The Arizona Cardinals did some interesting things with Budda Baker's extension.

Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker (1) stretches before they play the New England Patriots at State Farm Stadium on Dec. 15, 2024. / Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

ARIZONA -- The Arizona Cardinals handled arguably their biggest task ahead of the offseason after ensuring star safety Budda Baker stuck around after reaching an extension to keep him in the desert for a few more years.

Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort struck a three-year, $54 million extension to keep a face of the franchise around. Besides his work on the field, Baker's been a crucial building block of Arizona's rebuild with Ossenfort and head coach Jonathan Gannon.

Some specific notes on Baker's contract from OverTheCap:

Contract Notes

"Budda Baker signed a three year, $54 million contract extension with the Cardinals on December 18, 2024. $29.36 million is guaranteed of which $27 million is a new guarantee. Baker received a $12.245 million signing bonus.

"If on the roster on the 5th day of the 2025 league year, Baker will have his 2025 salary fully guaranteed and $7.7 million of his 2026 salary fully guaranteed. The contract has annual per game and workout bonuses. There are $1 million roster bonuses due on the 5th day of the 2026 and 2027 league years.

"The extension increased Baker's 2024 salary cap charge by $3.06 million."

Year By Year Contract Breakdown

2025

Base Salary: $7 million
Prorated Signing Bonus: $3,061,250
Roster Bonus: No regular, $255,000 per game
Workout Bonus: $500,000
Guaranteed Salary: $2.83 million
Cap number: $10,816,250

2026

Base Salary: $14.415 million
Prorated Signing Bonus: $3,061,250
Roster Bonus: Regular ($1 million), $255,000 per game
Workout Bonus: $500,000
Guaranteed Salary: None
Cap number: $19,231,250

2027

Base Salary: $16.075 million
Prorated Signing Bonus: $3,061,250
Roster Bonus: Regular ($1 million), $255,000 per game
Workout Bonus: $500,000
Guaranteed Salary: None
Cap number: $20,891,250

It was very interesting (and perhaps smart) that the Cardinals left Baker with no guaranteed money in the final two years of his deal. OverTheCap shows the Cardinals can cut Baker as a pre-June 1 cut and save $13.1 million (2026) and $17.8 million (2027) the last two years.