National Football League

Budda Baker, S, Washington: 2017 NFL Draft Scouting Report

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 2:09 p.m. ET

Fansided, Erik Lambert/FanSided via NFL Mocks

Sep 24, 2016; Tucson, AZ, USA; Washington Huskies defensive back Budda Baker (32) celebrates after a Arizona Wildcats fumble during the fourth quarter at Arizona Stadium. Washington won 35-28 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports

Budda Baker is one of several high quality safeties in the 2017 NFL draft. So what does his scouting report say about his prospects?

Position: S

School: Washington

Year: Junior

Height: 5’10”

Weight: 186 lbs

STRENGTHS:

Look how physical Budda Baker is on the blitz – tossing the RB to the ground & disrupting Darnold's pass re… https://t.co/0WlSkQHa3C

— Jonathan Valencia (@JonValencia_WiB) December 17, 2016

This guy does his best work around the line of scrimmage. Perhaps his biggest gift is being able to attack the quarterback. Most of the time he gets a free run into the backfield due to disguises. However, here he shows his violent hand work to discard the running back in order to finish the play. That extra effort resulted in a big interception for his team.

WEAKNESSES:

Ups 5.0 Budda Baker pic.twitter.com/kCsyHwmymj

— Los Cachorros NCAAF (@CachorrosNCAAF) December 20, 2016

This is a great example of where teams can take advantage of Baker. One thing he can’t learn or improve is how to get taller. Get him matched up against a tight end or bigger wide receiver, then quarterbacks will know to just throw it high. Baker is a good athlete but he doesn’t quite have the hops to jump through the roof to cover up the lack of inches.

Pro Comparison: D.J. Swearinger

It took three different teams before Swearinger finally found where he belongs. He’s at his best when he can attack and be aggressive as he was in Arizona. Though undersized his ability to blitz along with the sneaky coverage skills made him a versatile safety who could do a little bit of everything really well. That is what Baker is. A rock solid player.

Projection: 2nd Round

The only way a player like Baker with his significant lack of size gets drafted in the top 32 is if he is elite in some category. Maybe speed or instincts. He’s got some of both but not enough to crack the 1st round. So some team is going to get a potential Day 1 starter early in the 2nd. That’s not such a bad thing at all.