A couple of years ago, Jaquan Brisker appeared to be a rising star for the Chicago Bears. He was a tackling machine, decent in coverage and was always up for a good quote. But now, with Brisker in the final year of his rookie deal with the Bears, things have drastically changed.
Brisker is still strong against the run and he remains very vocal with the media (in the best way possible). However, his struggles in coverage are becoming impossible to ignore.
ESPN’s Aaron Schatz highlighted this in a recent piece in which he broke down each contending team’s biggest weakness heading into the playoffs.
“The Chicago defense has not been as strong as the Denver defense overall, but the Bears have the same weakness: defending against opposing slot receivers,” Schatz wrote. “… However, according to my coverage DVOA metric, the issue is not the main slot defender, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who joined the team in Week 9. The problem is when opponents can get their slot receivers onto other defenders — primarily cornerback Nick McCloud, safety Jaquan Brisker and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds.”
The numbers support this, too, as Brisker owns a paltry 46.4 coverage grade this season, by far the worst mark of his four-year NFL career.
The Chicago Bears will almost certainly part ways with Jaquan Brisker
Dec 20, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears safety Jaquan Brisker (9) reacts against the Green Bay Packers during the first quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images
The Bears don’t have much projected cap space as it is heading into the offseason, so they need to be careful with how they spend their money.
Taking that into consideration, it’s looking more and more like Brisker will sign elsewhere in free agency this spring, as Chicago has to do something about a defense that ranks 28th in the league.
Not only that, but Brisker has a concussion history, making him a rather risky bet on a lucrative multi-year deal regardless of his coverage issues. But when you combine all of the facts, you’ll understand why we may be seeing the former second-round pick play out his final days in the Windy City.
It’s a shame, too, considering Brisker burst on to the scene with 105 tackles, four sacks and an interception during his rookie campaign in 2022. He wasn’t terrible in coverage then, either. But things have taken a turn for the worse for the 26-year-old.
Look for the Bears to attack the safety position in the NFL Draft, especially with Kevin Byard being 32 years old and headed toward free agency, as well.
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