The Detroit Lions lost their backup quarterback this weekend when it was announced that Teddy Bridgewater was planning to retire (likely for good this time). With Bridgewater out of the equation, people are going to come up with all sorts of ideas for who should back up Jared Goff.
Mark Powell of FanSided believes he has the right idea for the Lions, though it may not be the most popular proposal among their fan base. Powell proposed that the Lions trade for Shedeur Sanders, who is currently in line to start for the Cleveland Browns.
"... Detroit should trade for Sanders, a young player with some promise who could be what Lions fans were hoping for in Hendon Hooker a few years ago. Sanders does not wilt under pressure — he's dealt with plenty of that, figuratively and literally, at Colorado and then the Browns with little help around him — and he's still on a rookie contract," Powell wrote.
Proposed Shedeur Sanders trade makes little sense for Lions
On the one hand, I get where Powell is coming from with this trade proposal. The Lions do need a backup quarterback in case something happens to Goff and it's possible that Josh Dobbs isn't the right guy for the job. That was Powell's argument at least.
"The second Goff goes down, the Lions postseason chances tumble. Of course, Brad Holmes could do something about that by acquiring a backup the Lions can actually rely on, or at least develop alongside Goff. Dobbs isn't that, and let's not pretend Luke Altmyer stands a chance."
On the side of the coin, Sanders would bring a level of distraction that the Lions simply don’t need. His production also hasn’t been strong enough to justify taking that kind of risk.
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To play along though, what does Powell have Detroit surrendering to land Sanders in this hypothetical trade? That would be just a fifth-round pick, which, funny enough, is where Sanders went in the 2025 draft despite being projected as a top-10 pick. Sanders plummeted to the fifth round and then, despite starting the year as the QB3 in Cleveland, went on to start seven games and appear in eight total. He threw seven touchdowns and 10 picks.
The Lions might need some insurance behind Goff but Sanders is someone they shouldn't entertain bringing in. If he had put up better numbers during his rookie year and/or didn't come with all of the media buzz due to being Deion Sanders' son ,maybe this could be something Detroit could consider. That's not the timeline we're living in though so the Lions need to pass on this trade proposal.
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