Falcons Hit With $250K Fine, Coach Ulbrich Fined $100K Over Savage NFL Draft Hoax Targeting Sanders
The Atlanta Falcons and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich are facing stiff penalties from the NFL after a prank call using confidential league information humiliated quarterback Shedeur Sanders during the 2025 NFL Draft.
League officials announced Wednesday that the Falcons organization has been fined $250,000 and Ulbrich personally fined $100,000.
The penalties stem from a call placed to Sanders on Friday by Ulbrich’s 21-year-old son, Jax, using a phone number that had been distributed only to team executives for draft-related communications.
According to ESPN, Jax obtained the sensitive contact information from his father’s iPad while visiting his parents’ home, later using it to impersonate New Orleans Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis in a prank that played out on a livestream of Sanders’ draft party.
Sanders answered the call, believing his draft slide had come to an end, only to be told seconds later that it was not. The stream abruptly ended after the call.
The Falcons issued a public statement accepting the league’s decision and pledged to enhance internal security.
“We appreciate the NFL’s swift and thorough review of last week’s data exposure and the event that transpired due to it,” the team said, according to the Daily Mail.
“We were proactive in addressing the situation internally and cooperated fully with the league throughout the process, and accept the discipline levied to Coach Jeff Ulbrich and the organization.”
The organization also revealed that Jax Ulbrich would be participating in community service initiatives as part of the response to the incident.
“Additionally, the Ulbrich family is working with the organization to participate in community service initiatives in relation to last week’s matter,” the statement read.
Sanders, son of Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, had been projected by some analysts to be a top-five selection.
Instead, he slid through the early rounds and was not picked until the Cleveland Browns selected him in the fifth round with the 144th overall pick.
His unexpected fall became one of the most talked-about moments of the draft.
In a statement posted to social media Sunday, Jax took full responsibility for the prank.
“On Friday night I made a tremendous mistake,” he wrote. “Shedeur, what I did was completely inexcusable, embarrassing, and shameful. I’m so sorry I took away from your moment—it was selfish and childish.”
Jax added that he later spoke with Sanders directly and expressed hope for forgiveness.
Video of the prank later circulated online, showing the caller posing as Loomis and telling Sanders, “We are going to take you as our next pick right here.” Sanders responded, “That would be legendary,” to which the prankster replied, “You’re going to have to wait a little bit longer, man. Sorry about that!” before ending the call.
Laughter could be heard in the background as friends reacted to the deception.
Sanders later explained that the number used to contact him was tied only to NFL executives and had been set up specifically for draft weekend.
“Nobody had that number,” he said. “The number was only in the email thread that the NFL sent out to only teams.”
In addition to Sanders, at least five other players are believed to have received similar prank calls, including undrafted wide receiver Isaiah Bond, Penn State tight end Tyler Warren and Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord.
The NFL has stated that those cases remain under investigation and appear unrelated to the Falcons or Ulbrich.
While the Falcons initially indicated no disciplinary action would be taken against Ulbrich, the NFL concluded that the breach of protocol warranted fines for both the coach and the team.
Scroll down to leave a comment and share your thoughts.
Leave a Comment