Cardinals' Budda Baker makes NFL Top 100 list for 7th straight season

Amid a franchise of inconsistency, one Cardinals player has been a constant, continuing to produce for Arizona‘s NFL team.

And continuing to be recognized by his peers.

That player, Budda Baker, was recently voted to the NFL Top 100 players list by NFL players for the seventh straight season, coming in at No. 75 overall.

Baker, a safety, has 1,021 tackles, 51 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, 44 pass breakups, eight interceptions, seven forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries during his nine years with the Cardinals since the team drafted him in 2017.

This is what NFL.com wrote about Baker on the NFL Top 100 list: “Mr. Cardinal continues to produce after nine seasons. Baker earned his seventh consecutive Pro Bowl selection and his seventh straight Top 100 nod. Now 30, Baker is set to celebrate a decade in the NFL in 2026 as he’s about to play for his fifth full-time head coach. While coaches have changed and the Cardinals have struggled in the win-loss column, Baker has been a standout through and through. He was again this past season.”

Teammate Trey McBride said on the NFL Top 100 broadcast on NFL Network: “When he’s out there, he plays like he’s the biggest and he plays like he’s the strongest. I just love the way he plays. He’s always around the football, he’s going to do everything he can to make sure that the ball is stopping with him.”

Said Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba: “His motor is something I really haven’t seen before. I would see it in the greats, just watching (Pittsburgh Steelers safety) Troy Polamalu, or just some of the great safeties.”

Baker was No. 34 on the Top 100 players list in 2025. In 2024, he was No. 89. He came in at No. 73 in 2023 and No. 67 in 2022.

Baker was ranked No. 19 on the 2021 list. He debuted on the list at No. 97 in 2020.

The Cardinals have had one other player unveiled on the NFL Top 100 for 2026 so far, with linebacker Josh Sweat coming in at No. 78.

Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.

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