ATLANTA — The Atlanta Falcons said Sunday that defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich's son was responsible for a prank call made to NFL draft pick Shedeur Sanders.
The Falcons released a statement saying 21-year-old Jax Ulbrich ''unintentionally came across the draft contact phone number for Shedeur Sanders off an open iPad while visiting his parent's home and wrote the number down to later conduct a prank call."
Though Jax Ulbrich provided the number, he was sitting beside an unidentified friend who actually made the call to Sanders.
The Falcons said Jeff Ulbrich was unaware of the data exposure or the prank until after the fact. They offered "sincere apologies to Shedeur Sanders and his family'' in their statement, and Jax Ulbrich also posted a public apology on social media.
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.
Shedeur Sanders was perhaps the draft's biggest story as he had to wait until the fifth round on Saturday before being drafted by the Cleveland Browns. He received a prank call on Friday night, the second day of the draft, while waiting.
In the call, Jax Ulbrich's friend identified himself as New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis and told Sanders he had been drafted by the Saints before ending the call.
''It didn't really have no impact on me because it was just like, OK. I don't feed into negativity or I don't feed into that stuff,'' Sanders said Saturday after being drafted. ''... This is what it is. I think, of course, it's childish, of course I feel like it was a childish act, but everybody do childish things here and there.''
