Report: Cardinals' Budda Baker Has High-Ankle Sprain; May Miss 2-3 Weeks with Injury

The Arizona Cardinals will reportedly be without safety Budda Baker for multiple weeks.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Monday that Baker suffered a high-ankle sprain and that "the hope" is that the defensive playmaker will be back in two or three weeks. However, Rapoport noted his return will ultimately be decided "on the severity."

This is another setback for the Cardinals, who are trending in the wrong direction with losses in four of their last five games.

Arizona is just 3-6 on the campaign despite entering the season with hopes of contending in the NFC with Kyler Murray under center and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins set to return after a suspension that lasted the first six games.

Yet things are not going anywhere close to as planned, and now the defense will be without one of its best players in the immediate future.

Baker's resume includes four Pro Bowl nods and two first-team All-Pro selections. He has appeared in nine games this season with 71 tackles, two passes defended and one forced fumble. If he misses just a handful of games, he could be well on his way to posting more than 100 tackles for the fourth time in the last five years.

Arizona will face the Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Chargers in the next three games ahead of a bye, which is quite a daunting stretch.

Every loss makes the playoffs seem like even more of a longshot at this point, making its ability to play well even without Baker all the more imperative.

The Cardinals could turn toward Chris Banjo at safety to help cover for the starter's absence.