The 2025 draft will be remembered for a few significant things. One will be the prolonged slide of quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Another will be the news of the prank call made to Sanders during the second night of the draft.
The league investigated. The NFL learned that the son of Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich made the call. The Falcons explained that Jax Ulbrich "unintentionally came across the draft contact phone number" for Sanders on an “open iPad” while Jax Ulbrich was visiting his parents’ home.
The NFL fined the team $250,000 and Ulbrich $100,000. The league also pushed the idea that Sanders's number was sent to a limited number of people per team in a confidential email, and that (basically) the Falcons shared the number with Ulbrich at their own risk.
That was not accurate. The number was contained in an email that went to roughly 2,000 people, via the same distribution list used for the daily transaction report. It was sent directly by the league to Ulbrich and many others in an email that was not marked "confidential."
Sanders isn't the only player who received a prank call last year. Defensive end Abdul Carter got a prank call that he'd be drafted by the Jaguars, who had traded up to No. 2, before Carter was picked by the Giants at No. 3. Running back Ashton Jeanty got a call that he’d been traded to the Cowboys, after he was picked by the Raiders.
The solution to the problem was clear: Severely limit access to the prospects' numbers.
This year, that's what the league will be doing.
"The relevant contact information will be provided by the league to a single point of contact at the club in football operations," an NFL spokesperson told PFT via email. "This individual will be responsible for safeguarding the numbers."
We'll see whether it works. Obviously, others who have the player's number could use the knowledge to prank him. The chances, however, of the prank call tracing to 345 Park Avenue and/or one of the teams will be minimized.
If the calls still happen, the NFL will have only one option. Make the phone calls after the picks have been announced to the world.