Baker was a highly-productive pass catcher and All-America selection during his high school career at McEachern in his hometown of Atlanta, GA. The four-star recruit then decided to join the University of Alabama, where his enrollment shortly , after receiving offers from several prominent power-five programs. His time with the Crimson Tide, however, was a quiet one.
In two seasons in Tuscaloosa, Baker appeared in 21 games with no starts and caught just nine passes for 116 yards and a touchdown. Following the 2021 season, he therefore decided that a change of scenery was in order and transferred to UCF after him joining Kentucky fell through after an initial commitment.
Baker spent his junior and senior campaigns with the Knights under head coach Gus Malzahn, and developed into the player he was supposed to become coming out of high school. Between his 2022 and 2023 campaigns, he saw action in 27 games and caught 108 passes for 1,935 yards and 12 touchdowns.
The first-team All-Big 12 selection was invited to the Scouting Combine and Senior Bowl after the end of his college career. He was then selected by New England in the fourth-round of the NFL Draft.
What will be his role? Baker will have a chance to see immediate playing time throughout his rookie season due to his ability to play the X position. New England’s receiver room is lacking in those with a skillset to play along the boundary and Baker played roughly 81 percent of his snaps out wide during his collegiate career.
What is his growth potential? Baker’s big play potential from college can certainly carry over to the NFL landscape. He flashed his contested catch abilities (where he hauled in 20-of-37 at UCF) in the team’s second open OTA when he went up to snag a pair of highlight reel catches — one showing strong concentration along the boundary to tap his toes in bounds.
Baker’s potential could result in him being a three-down receiver along the perimeter and a strong fit with Maye due to his large catch radius and ability to win downfield.
