 Ulbrich with theSan Francisco 49ers in 2002 | |||||||||||||
| Atlanta Falcons | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Defensive coordinator | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | (1977-02-17)February 17, 1977 (age 48) San Jose, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 240 lb (109 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Live Oak(Morgan Hill, California) | ||||||||||||
| College |
| ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2000: 3rd round, 86th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Position | Linebacker, No. 53 | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
Playing | |||||||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Head coaching record | |||||||||||||
| Regular season | 3–9 (.250) | ||||||||||||
| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||||||
Jeffery Wade Ulbrich (/ˈʊlbrɪk/; born February 17, 1977) is an American professionalfootball coach and formerlinebacker who is thedefensive coordinator for theAtlanta Falcons of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theHawaii Warriors and was selected by theSan Francisco 49ers in the third round (86th overall) in the2000 NFL draft and played for the 49ers from2000 to2009.
After retiring as a player following the 2009 season, Ulbrich was the assistant special teams coach for theSeattle Seahawks for two seasons. He then served as the linebackers and special teams coach at UCLA for three seasons and later served as an assistant coach for theAtlanta Falcons for six seasons. From 2021 to 2024, Ulbrich served as defensive coordinator for theNew York Jets, being promoted to interim head coach on October 8, 2024, following the firing ofRobert Saleh. Since 2025, Ulbrich has served as the defensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons.
Ulbrich attendedLive Oak High School inMorgan Hill, California, and lettered three times infootball and twice in wrestling. In football, he was a First-team All-League and team MVP. In wrestling, he won a league title (192 pounds).
Ulbrich redshirted in his lone season atSan Jose State before transferring to Gavilan College. He earned first-team All-Conference and team MVP in lone season atGavilan College inGilroy, California. He was a two-year starter atHawaii. He earned All-WAC first-team selection and team co-captain as a senior. He started all 12 games at middle linebacker. He led the conference with aschool-record 169 tackles (42 solo) his senior year. Ulbrich set a school record with 127 assisted tackles, breaking the old mark of 97. He ranked third in the league with eight sacks for 67 yards. He had 15 tackles for loss (58 yards). He was credited with eight quarterback pressures, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. He returned two interceptions for 38 yards and had one pass defensed. He played in seven games, starting three at strong side inside linebacker as a junior. He finished with 41 tackles (28 solo), including a nine-yard sack. He caused and recovered a fumble.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft0+3⁄8 in (1.84 m) | 249 lb (113 kg) | 31 in (0.79 m) | 9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) | 4.66 s | 1.57 s | 2.69 s | 4.30 s | 7.23 s | 32.0 in (0.81 m) | 9 ft 1 in (2.77 m) | 24 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine[1] | ||||||||||||
Ulbrich was selected out of theUniversity of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa by theSan Francisco 49ers in the third round (86th pick overall) of the2000 NFL draft.[2] He only saw action in four games during his rookie season due to a right shoulder injury. He won the starting job in2001. In2005, he started only five games at inside linebacker before missing the remainder of the season with a torn biceps muscle. He started in 9 out of 16 games in2006. Ulbrich took a backup role to first round pickPatrick Willis, and also a role on special teams. He was placed oninjured reserve on October 19, 2009, after he suffered a concussion. Ulbrich announced his plans to retire as a result of the concussion on December 9.[3] Upon retirement, he said that he would like to become a college football coach one day.[4]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2000 | SF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2001 | SF | 14 | 14 | 88 | 64 | 24 | 0.5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | SF | 14 | 13 | 70 | 47 | 23 | 1.5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | SF | 15 | 15 | 79 | 58 | 21 | 2.5 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | SF | 16 | 14 | 93 | 74 | 19 | 1.0 | 9 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 19 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005 | SF | 5 | 5 | 42 | 32 | 10 | 0.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | SF | 16 | 9 | 64 | 46 | 18 | 0.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | SF | 16 | 2 | 45 | 31 | 14 | 0.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | SF | 16 | 3 | 18 | 14 | 4 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | SF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 120 | 75 | 501 | 366 | 135 | 5.5 | 32 | 2 | 26 | 0 | 19 | 13 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2001 | SF | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | SF | 2 | 2 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 3 | 3 | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
On January 29, 2010, Ulbrich was hired by theSeattle Seahawks as a special teams assistant.[5]
In 2012, Ulbrich became theUCLA Bruins linebackers and special teams coach. Ulbrich was elevated to Assistant Head Coach in the spring of 2012, in addition to his duties with the linebackers and special teams. In February 2014, he was promoted to Defensive Coordinator. Two of his linebacker group, Anthony Barr and Jordan Zumwalt, were selected in the 2014 NFL Draft. Ulbrich's defensive unit was ranked third in the Pac-12 in total defense for 2014. It was led by the Butkus and Lott IMPACT Trophy winner linebacker Eric Kendricks. One of his players,Anthony Barr led the nation in sacks with 13.5.[6]
In 2015, Ulbrich was hired by theAtlanta Falcons as a linebackers coach.[7]
In the 2016 season, Ulbrich and the Falcons reachedSuper Bowl LI, where they faced theNew England Patriots. In the Super Bowl, the Falcons fell in a 34–28 overtime defeat.[8]
In 2020, Ulbrich was promoted to assistant head coach and linebackers coach.[9]
On October 12, 2020, Ulbrich was named defensive coordinator under interim head coachRaheem Morris, as part of a midseason shakeup of the coaching staff.[10]
On January 21, 2021, Ulbrich was hired by theNew York Jets as their defensive coordinator under head coachRobert Saleh.[11] On October 8, 2024, Ulbrich was named interim head coach of the Jets following the firing of head coachRobert Saleh after a 2–3 start of the2024 season.[12] After losing his first three games as coach, Ulbrich got his first win as a head coach on October 31, against theHouston Texans.[13] Ulbrich finished his stint as Jets interim head coach with a 3–9 record.[14]
On January 18, 2025, Ulbrich was hired by theAtlanta Falcons as their defensive coordinator under head coachRaheem Morris.[15]
On January 19, 2026, the Falcons announced that Ulbrich would remain in his same position on the staff of new head coach,Kevin Stefanski.[16]
Ulbrich and his wife, Cristina, have three children together.[17]
Ulbrich's son came to media attention in April 2025 after he was involved in a prank call toShedeur Sanders during the2025 NFL draft, in which his friend pretended to be Saints general managerMickey Loomis selecting Sanders before saying "you're gonna have to wait a little bit longer." The son got the private phone number from his father's unlocked iPad, and later apologized for his involvement.[18] The NFL fined the Falcons $250,000 and Ulbrich $100,000 for the incident. The league said the fines stemmed from the organization’s failure to prevent the disclosure of confidential information distributed to the club in advance of the NFL Draft.[19]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Post season | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| NYJ | 2024* | 3 | 9 | 0 | .250 | 3rd in AFC East | — | — | — | — |
| Total | 3 | 9 | 0 | .250 | — | — | — | |||
