RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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CLEVELAND, OHIO - AUGUST 22: Shedeur Sanders #2 of the Cleveland Browns warms up prior to a preseason game against the Buffalo Bills at Huntington Bank Field on August 22, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images) Getty
The Atlanta Falcons finally have Michael Penix Jr. healthy enough to battle Tua Tagovailoa for the starting quarterback job. Skip Bayles, however, believes they should add another name to the conversation.
And he wants the Cleveland Browns to make it happen.
After Cleveland named Deshaun Watson its Week 1 starter over Shedeur Sanders on Monday, Bayless ripped the decision and called for the Browns to trade Sanders to Atlanta.
Bayless didn’t stop at simply suggesting a change of scenery. He also made it clear where Sanders would stand in the Falcons’ current quarterback room.
Skip Bayless Wants Shedeur Sanders Traded to Falcons
Bayless gave his reaction after Browns head coach Todd Monken officially selected Watson as his starter .
“This sorry-a** franchise does not deserve to have Shedeur Sanders on its roster anymore,” Bayless said in a video posted to X .
Bayless said he wished Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and Monken would “set him free” by moving Sanders before the season, then pointed directly toward Atlanta as his preferred destination.
“I’d love to see Shedeur in Atlanta,” Bayless said.
He later argued Sanders would win more games this season than either Penix or Tagovailoa and declared Sanders better than both quarterbacks Atlanta is currently evaluating.
There has been no report that the Falcons have shown interest in trading for Sanders, and Bayless was making his own case rather than reporting potential trade talks.
Still, the timing makes Atlanta — not to mention his father, Deion Sanders, beginning his NFL career with the Falcons — an interesting choice for Bayless.
Penix was cleared for full-team work over the weekend after spending training camp limited while recovering from the torn ACL he suffered last November. Falcons.com’s Tori McElhaney reported that Penix and Tagovailoa rotated with the first-team offense during Monday’s practice.
Atlanta also has a familiar connection to Sanders in head coach Kevin Stefanski.
Stefanski coached Sanders during his rookie season in Cleveland and named him the Browns’ starter for the remainder of the 2025 season in December, praising the rookie’s improvement and work ethic.
Shedeur Sanders Has Long Had Skip Bayless’ Support
Bayless’ latest Sanders take shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
He has been one of the quarterback’s most vocal supporters since Sanders entered the NFL , frequently criticizing how Cleveland handled him.
Back in October 2025, Bayless was already calling for someone to trade for Sanders while he sat behind Dillon Gabriel .
Sanders appeared in eight games as a rookie and made seven starts, finishing 3-4 while completing 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. His best performance came against the Tennessee Titans in December, when he threw for 364 yards and three touchdowns while adding a rushing score.
Cleveland nevertheless opened the quarterback competition again this summer after Watson returned from the Achilles injuries that cost him the entire 2025 season.
Monken ended that competition Monday.
Watson will start Sept. 13 against the Jacksonville Jaguars after Monken said the veteran gave Cleveland the best chance to “move the ball and score points.”
Bayless clearly doesn’t agree with that.
And rather than wait for Sanders to get another opportunity in Cleveland, he now wants the Browns to send him to a former coach who already has two quarterbacks fighting for the same job.
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