TEMPE, Ariz. -- As the Detroit Lions' offense got lined up on a first down early in the third quarter against the Arizona Cardinals, safety Budda Baker stood momentarily as the single-high safety. He then walked closer to the line of scrimmage, stopping on the left side of the defense and lining up as one of two slot defensive backs.
The Lions had already sent tight end Parker Hesse in motion from fullback to the right flanker. Offensive lineman Dan Skipper, who was an eligible receiver, motioned from the left to the right and lined up alongside Hesse, giving the Lions three players outside the right tackle once Baker made his position known.
When the play began, Detroit running back David Montgomery took a handoff and cut left, away from Baker. To the naked eye, it was a play like thousands of others during a season. But, when Hesse made a beeline to Baker after his assignment at the line was taken care of, it was obvious another team was committing resources to account for Baker -- even when the play wasn't in his direction.
It's happening to Baker every game, defensive backs coach Patrick Toney said.
"I think you see teams manipulate their rules to make sure they can account for him in the run game," he added.
Toney said it's rare for teams to break their rules for a safety, but it's become a significant way Baker has had an impact on the Cardinals' defense, both this year and throughout his career.
Baker has two sacks, no interceptions, no touchdowns, no forced fumbles and no fumble recoveries this season. His 114 tackles are the sixth most in the NFL this season, but his stats don't tell the full story. Late in the first quarter against the New York Jets, quarterback Aaron Rodgers checked down to running back Breece Hall. When the ball left Rodgers' right hand, Baker was 10 yards from Hall. When Hall caught it, Baker was within seven. Baker brought Hall down for just a three-yard gain.
The six-time Pro Bowler doesn't find comfort in getting recognized for so-called success by others. He finds that internally.
"I just try to put it on tape," Baker said. "I always like to say men lie, women lie, numbers don't lie. That film and the eye in the sky doesn't lie. So, whoever understands football and they understand what we're doing, that's who can attest."
Just ask Rodgers.
The future Hall of Fame quarterback said on "The Pat McAfee Show" that watching Baker on film was "impressive" ahead of their Week 10 matchup, comparing Baker to former Indianapolis Colts safety Bob Sanders. Rodgers said Baker is "fun to watch on film" and is someone "you got to be aware of," a sentiment shared by other players around the league.
"There's a few secondary guys over the years where you're like, 'OK, I gotta know where this guy is at before the snap," Rodgers said. "[Troy] Polamalu was always like that, Ed Reed was always like that. C-Wood [Charles Woodson], I felt like was always that kind of guy. Ronde Barber was that kinda guy. Harrison Smith, in Minnesota forever, cause he's such a great disguiser and all over the place.
"And Budda is one of those guys. You just gotta know where he's at. I'm excited for the challenge but I have a ton of respect for his game. The tape doesn't lie, they always say and his tape looks pretty damn good."
Baker's presence is enough to change gameplans and keep defensive coordinators up at night.
He's been targeted just 32 times in 363 coverage snaps this season, but fellow safety Jalen Thompson said teams will "literally attack the whole other side of the field away from him." Cornerback Starling Thomas V, who tends to line up on the same side of the field as Baker, can see when quarterbacks are looking for Baker as they set up their protections and make any last-second changes at the line of scrimmage.
"I would say all of your plays, you should always have eyes on where he could be," Chicago Bears tackle Darnell Wright said. "If it's a frontside run, you should always have a built-in pressure alert for if he does fly downhill because a lot of times he'll be sitting back there and all of a sudden he's looking at the QB's hands, he times the cadence up and he's blitzing and you don't really have time to get out to it. So, you should have something built in to where you can get out to him, like something that requires minimal communication."
The ultimate compliment to Baker came last season when the Houston Texans committed two receivers and a tight end to blocking him on a second-and-8 play in the third quarter.
It's been happening to him since his third year in the league, Baker said. There have been times when he gets blocked on either side and has nowhere to go. And, to this day, it still surprises Baker when the opposite guard comes to block him when he's in the post or when a receiver comes across the field to hit him.
When teams focus on Baker, it opens the field for the rest of the defense to get one-on-ones.
"It's just going to free other people up to make plays," linebacker Kyzir White said. "He gets a lot of attention, rightfully so.
"It just free everybody else up and we all got to capitalize."
One of the many things that stands out to Toney about Baker is his production compared to the amount of attention he gets. Even when teams are either blocking him on every run play or using multiple players at times, Baker still is able to get to the ball and make a play.
"He is definitely an unsung player in the league," Toney said. "Everyone makes a big deal out of interceptions, which are great. That's a small percentage of what you do on every down and how are you affecting the game, right? And I think when you look at the totality of a game, how he affects it, he is as elite as anybody else in the NFL."