If the Detroit Lions decide to swing big at the 2026 trade deadline, one possible target may come from the team they just beat.
Arizona’s rough start has already led to one move, and that could open the door for more. The Cardinals traded Marvin Harrison Jr. on Sunday, and with draft capital now a clear priority, safety Budda Baker could be in play.
Detroit, meanwhile, has a safety situation that still carries some uncertainty even with Brian Branch set to return from injury. Kerby Joseph is still working through a lingering knee issue.
That combination makes Baker a logical name to watch before the Nov. 10 trade deadline. The Lions have the cap space to make a real run at him, and there are a few different ways a deal could come together.
One possibility would send Detroit a little extra value along with Baker. In that version, the Lions would give up a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 sixth-round pick, while Arizona would send back Baker and a 2028 fifth-round pick.
That kind of deal would amount to something of an overpay, but it would also bring future capital back to Detroit. The general sense around Baker’s value is that a mid-round pick would be enough, especially with the 30-year-old still attached to another season of a pricey contract.
For the Lions, though, the appeal is obvious. They’d be getting 1.5 seasons of a former All-Pro who can move all over the defense and attack quarterbacks with timely blitzes, exactly the kind of wrinkle Detroit saw Sunday. Baker would give the secondary another layer.
A cleaner deal would be even simpler: Detroit sends a 2027 fourth-round pick, and Arizona sends Baker.
That may be the best read on what it would take if the Lions try to land him straight up. His age and contract help keep the price from getting too steep, even with the resume he’s built over the years.
From Detroit’s perspective, a fourth-rounder feels reasonable if the team believes Baker can stabilize the back end. The biggest variable is Joseph’s health, but if the injury outlook doesn’t clear up soon, Baker looks like a move that would raise the defense’s ceiling.
Then there’s the blockbuster version.
In that scenario, the Lions would send tight end Sam LaPorta and a 2027 third-round pick to Arizona, while the Cardinals would return Baker, EDGE Josh Sweat, and a 2027 fourth-round pick.
LaPorta is a cornerstone piece for Detroit, and even with reports that extension talks have hit an impasse, the expectation is still that a deal eventually gets done or the team uses the franchise tag to keep him for another year.
But as a pure hypothetical, the fit is easy to see. Arizona already has one of the league’s top tight ends in Trey McBride, so adding LaPorta would give new head coach Mike LaFleur another dangerous pass catcher and some intriguing 12 personnel possibilities.
Detroit would be getting the bigger defensive haul. Sweat is another player whose name has surfaced in trade chatter, and the Cardinals’ current situation has only added fuel to that idea. Sweat requested a trade in the offseason, and the Lions made sense then because they needed pass-rush help.
The fit never really went away. Even with encouraging early signs from D.J.
Wonnum, the Lions can still use more firepower on a defense that leads the league in sacks. The cost would be steep, especially with both Baker and Sweat carrying expensive contracts, but the idea shows how much Detroit could do if it wanted to turn the deadline into a major roster overhaul.
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