The son of Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich admitted to making a prank call to quarterback Shedeur Sanders during the 2024 NFL Draft, as Sanders slid from a projected first-round pick to being selected in the fifth round.
Jax Ulbrich, 21, issued a public apology through a statement posted on his Instagram account. In the post, he acknowledged his actions and extended an apology directly to Sanders, who played college football for the Colorado Buffaloes.
“On Friday night, I made a tremendous mistake,” Ulbrich wrote. “Shedeur, what I did was completely inexcusable, embarrassing, and shameful. I’m so sorry I took away from your moment, it was childish and selfish. I could never imagine getting ready to celebrate one of the greatest moments of your life and I made a terrible mistake and messed up with that moment. Thank you for accepting my call earlier today, I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”
The NFL confirmed to Fox News Digital on Sunday that a probe had been launched into the prank call incident. According to a statement issued by the Atlanta Falcons, Jax Ulbrich obtained Sanders’ draft contact number after encountering it on an iPad left unattended at his parents’ house. The team emphasized that Jeff Ulbrich was not aware of the data exposure or the prank until after it had occurred.
“Earlier in the week, Jax Ulbrich, the 21-year-old son of defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, unintentionally came across the draft contact phone number for Shedeur Sanders off an open iPad while visiting his parents’ home and wrote the number down to later conduct a prank call,” the Falcons said. “Jeff Ulbrich was unaware of the data exposure or any facets of the prank and was made aware of the above only after the fact.”
To recap:
– Jax Ulbrich got Shedeur Sanders’ number from iPad he shouldn’t have been using
– Waited days (weeks?) until draft to make the prank call
– Filmed + posted a video making the call
– Waited days to make an apology
No realistic punishment either
Just loser behavior pic.twitter.com/nT2LT7aGuD— Colin McTamany (@Colin_McT) April 27, 2025
The Falcons further stated that they do not condone the behavior and have reached out to the Sanders family to apologize. They confirmed that Jax Ulbrich personally apologized to Shedeur Sanders and his family. The team also indicated they have been in communication with the NFL and will continue to cooperate fully with any league inquiries.
“We are thoroughly reviewing all protocols, and updating if necessary, to help prevent an incident like this from happening again,” the Falcons added.
Falcons’ statement on the involvement of defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich’s son, Jax, in the draft weekend prank call to Shedeur Sanders: pic.twitter.com/PgSxURroaY
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 27, 2025
Reports indicated that Sanders received at least two prank calls during the course of the draft process. Ultimately, Sanders was selected by the Cleveland Browns with the 144th overall pick.
When asked about the prank calls, Sanders addressed the situation during an interview with Cleveland media, as reported by ESPN. “It didn’t really have an impact on me, because it was just like, I mean, OK, like I don’t feed into negativity, or I don’t feed into that stuff,” Sanders said. “You’ve seen on Deion [Sanders] Jr’s YouTube video. My reaction to it, I don’t – it is what it is. I think, of course, it’s childish. Of course, I feel like it was a childish act, but everybody does childish things here and there.”
Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski also commented on the incident, telling reporters that “people are morons” when asked about the prank call.
As of Monday morning, the NFL has not provided further public updates on the status of its investigation into the prank call.
