The Atlanta Falcons were fined $250,000 and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich was fined $100,000 “for failing to prevent the disclosure of confidential information distributed to the club in advance of the NFL Draft.” This, of course, is in response to Jeff’s son Jax making a prank call to Shedeur Sanders on the second day of the NFL Draft, pretending to be another team that planned to take him with their next pick.
Jax apparently got the number from his father’s open iPad, which had Shedeur’s contact information in it.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported the wording of the accusation from the NFL made it sound as though the Falcons gave the information to Ulbrich. But that isn’t what happened, according to Florio.
Ulbrich got Shedeur’s information directly from the league
Florio examines exactly how it went down. He’s really good at this.
The league sent the information directly to Ulbrich. Here’s what happened.
The process began with the league sending a memo on Wednesday, April 23, to all General Managers, head coaches, player personnel directors, and club IT directors with a list of 45 player phone numbers: 16 who were personally attending the draft, 24 (including Sanders) who were participating virtually, and five who were part of the 2025 International Player Pathway Program and who would be in Green Bay for the draft. The memo was marked “Confidential” at the top.
If that was the final communication that contained Sanders’s number, the notion that the Falcons created the problem by sharing the information with Ulbrich would hold water. However, the NFL sent a separate email after the “confidential” memo was distributed. The email was, for some reason, sent to all of the recipients of the NFL’s daily transaction report. That group includes all coaches and assistant coaches.
In other words, the NFL sent the email to Ulbrich. PFT has obtained the email. It does not use the word “confidential.”
The email, sent on April 23 to “All Waivers [NFL League]” said this: “Sheadeur [sic] Sanders has informed the NFL Player Personnel Department that he has a new cell phone number beginning today.” The email then identifies the new number.
Given that Ulbrich’s son reached Sanders, common sense says he used (wait for it) the new number. Which makes sense, since Ulbrich got the email that included one, and only one, number — the new number for Shedeur Sanders.
So, basically, ignore any effort by the NFL to spread the word via captive and/or favorable reporters that the Falcons deserve the blame for choosing to share confidential information with Ulbrich. Ulbrich got it straight from the league, thanks to the email that was sent to far more people than those that needed to know it.
Are the Falcons being wrongfully punished?
If the NFL is saying that the Falcons didn’t disclose that they spread confidential information, and that’s why they are being punished, wouldn’t the league be in the wrong? Most logical people would – perhaps rightfully so – deduce that this was a public relations nightmare involving an incoming star prospect and someone connected to an NFL team. Well, at the very least, NFL team adjacent.
While this seems to be more about making an example out of someone for the PR mess, the NFL did so with a poor explanation.
NFL’s Version of Shedeur Sanders Call Isn’t Accurate: Report