Budda Baker’s Unexpected Social Media Tease For The Philadelphia Eagles

Budda Baker is the apple of the eye for fans of the Philadelphia Eagles as training camp begins.

Adam Schefter reported that the five-time Pro Bowler will report to training camp for the Arizona Cardinals despite disagreements with the team over his contract situation. 

However, Baker’s social media activity suggests he has his sight set elsewhere.

It’s an era when James Harden and Saquon Barkley sound the sirens by wiping their social media pages clean of any mentions of their respective teams. Read into it, everyone.

Simply reporting to camp also isn't exactly the best vote of confidence. It's most likely more about avoiding fines than about reconsidering his offseason trade request.

Will Howie Roseman and the Eagles make a move for a star safety to patch a weakness on their roster?

Acquiring a 27-year-old in the top tier of his position in the NFL boosts a roster. The question isn’t whether or not the Eagles could use Baker. It's about the big-picture consequences of a potential trade.

Roseman shrewdly acquired C.J. Gardner Johnson from the New Orleans Saints in August 2022 for a minimal return of late-round compensation. 

However, Zach Berman of The Athletic pointed out as a guest on The John Kincade Show that Baker is a much more lofty trade candidate because a move would require more significant draft compensation and a bigger financial investment.

Gardner-Johnson, the league’s co-leader in interceptions in 2022, only made $2.54 million in one season in Philadelphia. Baker is due $13.09 million in 2023.

Berman has also pointed out that some of Roseman’s best trades have involved sending minimal draft compensation for players on the final year of cheap rookie contracts. The acquisitions of Timmy Jernigan in 2017 and Jordan Howard in 2019 paid dividends just like the trade for Gardner-Johnson.

Jeremy Chinn of the Carolina Panthers seems like a likelier trade candidate for the Eagles.

As trivial as one like on social media might seem, professional athletes have (generally speaking) reached a point of behavior more commonly associated with high school drama.

Budda Baker isn't the likeliest trade candidate for Philadelphia. However, talks between Howie Roseman and GM Monti Ossenfort certainly aren’t off the table.

Watch The John Kincade Show streaming live on the 97.5 The Fanatic YouTube page on weekday mornings from 6am-10am.

The Philadelphia Eagles are almost ready to begin training camp at the Nova Care Complex.

The city of Philadelphia has the luxury of a baseball team in contention for the World Series once again in 2023. Are the Phillies actually overshadowing the Eagles less than half a year after an appearance in Super Bowl LVII though?

The offseason buzz hasn’t been as loud as in past years. Howie Roseman focused mostly on retaining key players that helped the Eagles win the NFC Championship Game in January.

The biggest splashes came at the NFL Draft. The Eagles entered the spotlight by adding a trio of Georgia Bulldogs in Jalen Carter, Nolan Smith, and Kelee Ringo.

It was an offseason without too many big-name free agents or blockbuster trades. However, the most passionate fan base in the NFL always has the hunger to watch the most prominent franchise in town. 

Training camp battles will always draw attention. The competition for both starting safety positions and the right guard spot in between franchise legends Lane Johnson and Jason Kelce will be the most impactful.

Nick Sirianni and the coaching staff will have their eyes on Cam Jurgens vs. Tyler Steen, Sydney Brown vs. Terrell Edmunds vs. (Ed) Reed Blankenship, and even a potential... punter battle.

However, the real draw of training camp and the NFL preseason is the lure of a looming season. As much as football fans like to write off the storylines, they’ll still slurp them up as quickly as an ice-cold beer at a tailgate before the home opener.

Remember the dates when you’ll overreact to every detail that comes out of daily practices in anticipation of the defense of an NFC Championship and a quest to avenge the sour taste of a Super Bowl loss against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The days at Lehigh University are over. An excellent tradition that included several other stops throughout franchise history ended in 2013.

Modern accommodations at the Nova Care Complex provide a sensible option for professional athletes, but some fans do miss the excitement of a late-summer trip to Eagles training camp (especially the ones who don't have the opportunity to see regular-season games in an era when tickets are in such high demand).

However, you'll see the practice notes, injury updates, and press conference takeaways from your favorite Eagles beat reporters beginning on Tuesday, July 25.

Philadelphia fans still have one opportunity to watch the team live during training camp.

Eagles Training Camp Public Practice presented by Independence Blue Cross will take place at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday, August 6 at 7 pm.

Tickets are $10, and proceeds benefit the Eagles Autism Foundation.

Before you say that open practice has never mattered, remember that Nelson Agholor was public enemy number one entering the 2017 season. The roaring crowd at the Linc cheered Agholor on August 14, 2017, and the confidence he built as a preseason star actually mattered.

Agholor became a dangerous game-breaker throughout one of the most memorable seasons in Philadelphia sports history.

The Eagles will head south on I-95 for the preseason opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday, August 12.

Most Eagles fans have two immediate reactions when they hear Eagles-Ravens preseason.

The first: the cringy moment when the organization canceled a game because of sloppy field conditions at Veterans Stadium. The second: when the era of Terrell Owens in midnight green started with an 81-yard bomb from Donovan McNabb.

The Eagles will hold joint practices with the Cleveland Browns the week leading up to Philadelphia's second preseason game.

The teams have not announced the official dates. Whatever you do, please don't buy into the notion of "winning" a joint practice.

The Eagles will take the field at the Linc in front of the home crowd against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday, August 17.

It's not clear yet which starters will dress. It could be the first chance that fans have to watch (backup) Marcus Mariota after the Eagles have finally...done the deal.

Mariota provides a serviceable option behind Jalen Hurts, but his legacy in franchise history probably won't change.

The NFL preseason finale isn't the most dazzling football you'll ever watch. 

However, Eagles fans can still point to one of the most impactful final roster decisions in franchise history as a reason why the game can actually matter.

Corey Clement snuck onto the 2017 roster and later went for 100 yards in Super Bowl LII.

The Birds wrap up the preseason at home on Thursday, August 24 against the Indianapolis Colts at 8 pm.

NFL teams trim the rosters from 90 to 53 on August 29.

The announced rosters, however, don't always last until opening day. Surprise cuts frequently find ways onto other rosters in the final days of August or early September.

Why has Hard Knocks taken so long to get off the ground?

We finally found out that the New York Jets will be the featured team. As Adam Schefter told The John Kincade Show last week, HBO usually has boots on the ground at team facilities weeks before training camp.

At some point, you'll see what Pat Egan considers the one thing "scratching the football itch that's missing in our lives" late in the summer. Hard Knocks has aired on Tuesday nights in most past seasons.

This day can't come soon enough.

You can wash the hype away on Sunday, September 10 when the Eagles visit Foxborough to face the New England Patriots.

Nothing would wash away the anxiety of preseason like spoiling a ceremony honoring Tom Brady's jersey retirement.

Watch The John Kincade Show streaming live on the 97.5 The Fanatic YouTube page on weekday mornings from 6am-10am.