“My dad... he never could spank again."
Shedeur Sanders was on the wrong end of a prank call — and now the caller is apologizing.
The 23-year-old quarterback, who played two seasons with the Colorado Buffaloes under his father, Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, had to wait until the fifth round to hear his name called at the 2025 NFL Draft.
He was eventually selected by the Cleveland Browns with the 144th pick, but not before controversy arose.
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On April 25, during Day 2 of the draft, Shedeur Sanders was documenting his journey to the NFL when he received a phone call from someone impersonating New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis.
At the time, the Saints were on the clock and ready to announce their pick.
"We're going to take you with our next pick, man, but you're going to have to wait a little bit longer, man. Sorry about that,” the caller said to Shedeur Sanders, who was surrounded by family.
An NFL official said the league is looking into how Shedeur Sanders’ private number was leaked and then used for this prank call: pic.twitter.com/h5P1CIIQlI
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 27, 2025
“What does that even mean?” Shedeur Sanders said as cameras followed.
Moments later, the Saints drafted former Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough with the 40th pick — leaving Shedeur Sanders and his family at a loss for words.
According to TMZ, Shedeur Sanders had gotten a new phone exclusively for draft night and NFL teams were the only ones with the number.
His reaction was captured in a video uploaded by Well Off Media, a production company owned by his older brother, Deion Sanders Jr..
Atlanta Falcons confirm who was behind the prank call
On April 27, the Atlanta Falcons released a statement confirming that Jax Ulbrich — the 21-year-old son of Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich — was the one behind the prank call.
The statement came after a video went viral of Jax Ulbrich and his friend making the prank call.
The Falcons went on to reveal that Jax Ulbrich “unintentionally came across the draft contact phone number for Shedeur Sanders off an open iPad while visiting his parent’s home.”
Falcons’ statement on the involvement of defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich’s son, Jax, in the draft weekend prank call to Shedeur Sanders: pic.twitter.com/PgSxURroaY
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 27, 2025
Jax Ulbrich wrote the number down on a piece of paper, which his friend was seen reading off of in the video.
“The Atlanta Falcons do not condone this behavior and send our sincere apologies to Shedeur Sanders and his family, who we have been in contact with to apologize to,” the team added in their statement.
The Falcons also confirmed that Jeff Ulbrich — who was an assistant coach with the team from 2015 to 2020 before signing as defensive coordinator in January — was unaware of “any facets of the prank.”
Jax Ulbrich issues direct apology to Shedeur Sanders
Also on April 27, Jax Ulbrich took to his Instagram account to issue a public apology to Shedeur Sanders.
“On Friday night I made a tremendous mistake,” Jax Ulbrich, who plays running back at Berry College (a Division III school), wrote in an Instagram post, which was also shared to his Instagram Stories.
“Shedeur, what I did was completely inexcusable, embarrassing, and shameful,” he added. “I’m so sorry I took away from your moment, it was selfish and childish.”
According to the apology, Jax Ulbrich had apologized to Shedeur Sanders over the phone earlier that day.
“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,” he continued.
“I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me,” he concluded.
After officially joining the Browns on Day 3 of the NFL Draft, Shedeur Sanders was asked about the prank call during a conference call with Cleveland-area reporters.
"It didn't really have an impact on me," Sanders said of the prank. “Of course, I feel like it was a childish act, but everybody does childish things here and there."
The NFL community later learned that Shedeur Sanders wasn’t the only one to receive a prank call.
Tight end Tyler Warren, who was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts, and offensive tackle Chase Lundt, who was drafted by the Buffalo Bills, were also on the wrong end of prank calls on draft night, per ESPN.
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The Falcons confirmed with ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Jax Ulbrich wasn’t behind those other two prank calls.
