The Atlanta Falcons were fined a hefty $250,000, while their defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich was assessed a $100,000 penalty. This comes after Ulbrich’s son was involved in a prank on Shedeur Sanders during the NFL draft. The NFL upheld the fines Wednesday, citing the failure of the Falcons and Ulbrich to prevent the leak of confidential information distributed to the club before the NFL draft.
The Falcons, who revealed that Ulbrich’s 21-year-old son Jax was behind the prank while Sanders waited impatiently for his name to be called in the draft, accepted the league’s punishment.
“We appreciate the NFL’s prompt and thorough review of last week’s data exposure and resulting event,” the Falcons said in a statement.
They added: “We have been proactive in handling the situation internally and have cooperated fully with the league throughout the process, and accept the discipline imposed on Coach Jeff Ulbrich and the organization. We are confident in our safety policies and practices and will continue to insist that our staff adhere to them, whether on or off site.”
The Falcons also announced that the Ulbrich family is “working with the organization to participate in community service initiatives related to last week’s case.”
The Falcons revealed Sunday that Jax Ulbrich “unintentionally came across Shedeur Sanders’ draft phone number on an open iPad while visiting his parents’ house and wrote down the number and then pulled a prank.”
Jax Ulbrich was with an unidentified friend who actually called Sanders on Friday, the second day of the draft. Sanders, a standout quarterback from Colorado, is the son of Buffaloes coach and Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, who began his NFL career with the Falcons.
Sanders, who entered the draft expecting to be a first-round pick, was selected Saturday in the fifth round by the Cleveland Browns.
The Falcons said Jeff Ulbrich didn’t know about the data exposure or prank until after the fact. The team offered “sincere apologies to Shedeur Sanders and his family.”
Jax Ulbrich also issued a public apology on social media.
The NFL continues to investigate hoaxes directed at other players during the NFL Draft. The Associated Press reported Tuesday that the call to Shedeur Sanders was unrelated to the other hoaxes.
Tyler Warren, Kyle McCord, Mason Graham and Chase Lundt also reported receiving prank calls.
