It started with a prank call—and spiraled into a full-on embarrassment for the Atlanta Falcons. As Shedeur Sanders sat waiting to hear his name called during the 2025 NFL Draft, his phone rang. On the other end? Someone pretending to be Saints GM Mickey Loomis. It wasn’t Loomis. It was Jax Ulbrich, the 21-year-old son of Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, who somehow thought impersonating a GM during a player’s biggest career moment was comedy. Spoiler: it wasn’t.
The fallout was instant. The prank call went viral. And the NFL came down hard. A $100,000 fine for Jeff Ulbrich. Another $250,000 for the Falcons. And a league-issued statement emphasizing the importance of protecting confidential draft information. That iPad Jax used to grab the QB’s number? Left open by his father. The league didn’t take that lightly.
But surprisingly, Shedeur handled it like a pro. “It didn’t really have an impact on me… I don’t feed into negativity,” he said. He ended up being drafted by the Browns in the fifth round, sliding further than most expected.
Jeff Ulbrich, to his credit, didn’t duck the heat. He issued a public apology, took full responsibility, and confirmed he won’t appeal the fine. “I’m grateful to the Sanders family for being gracious,” he said. He admitted the mistake of leaving sensitive information exposed and notified the team as soon as he found out what happened. That level of accountability is rare—and necessary.
The Falcons, in their official statement, acknowledged the mishap, vowed to tighten internal data security, and revealed one major step forward: the Ulbrich family will now be participating in community service initiatives tied to the incident. The team’s official statement read:
“We appreciate the NFL’s swift and thorough review of last week’s data exposure and the event that transpired due to it.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. We are confident in our security policies and practices and will continue to emphasize adherence to them with our staff whether on or off premises. Additionally, the Ulbrich family is working with the organization to participate in community service initiatives in relation to last week’s matter.”
Statement from the #Falcons, who say “the Ulbrich family is working with the organization to participate in community service initiatives in relation to last week’s matter.” https://t.co/KFQHpJrgSD pic.twitter.com/ZMtUBvKh4O
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) April 30, 2025
An attempt to turn embarrassment into a teaching moment—for both the team and a family that now knows NFL mistakes don’t just cost games, they cost trust.
Meanwhile, NFL circles haven’t been kind to Jax’s naivety. Darius Slay Jr.’s wife, Jennifer, summed up how Jeff would felt standing behind the podium in front of a dozen of cameras and the whole world watching: “Wowwwwwww!!!!!! I know dad pissed at his son. Dumbest call he ever made. And recorded himself doing it?” But with the dust settling, maybe, just maybe, the lesson sticks.
Jeff Ulbrich’s son, Jax, owns up to the ‘shameful’ prank
Maybe Jax was trying his feet to get the spotlight. But he wouldn’t have envisioned it could go this far. Now, Jeff Ulbrich’s son has finally stepped forward. Not with more jokes—but with a public apology. He dropped it via Instagram, admitting what most people had already said out loud: this wasn’t just bad taste, it was a full-blown screw-up.
“On Friday night, I made a tremendous mistake,” Jax wrote. “Sheduer [sic], what I did was completely inexcusable, embarrassing, and shameful.” No dancing around it. No excuses. Just straight-up accountability. And he didn’t stop there. He added, “I’m so sorry I took away from your moment. It was selfish and childish.”
He also revealed he picked up the phone and called Shedeur directly. Not through an agent, not through a PR rep. One-on-one. According to Jax, “I could never imagine getting ready to celebrate one of the greatest moments of your life and I made a terrible mistake and messed with that moment.” The words didn’t feel rehearsed. They felt real and maybe that’s surely a lesson learnt, right? Raw. Like a kid who got way ahead of himself—and then had to watch the replay in slow motion.
What makes this even heavier is that Jax isn’t just some random fanboy trolling online. He’s the son of now Falcons DC. And he should have acted like one! Because that NFL coach tag is enough to get you the pull and fanfare you didn’t want, but would always be right there.
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