Ten days after former NFL safety and ESPN analyst Matt Bowen stated that the Pittsburgh Steelers would be a great landing spot for one of the top free agents this offseason, fellow ESPN analyst Aaron Schatz doubled down on it Friday morning.
In a piece highlighting one free agent each team should sign, Schatz named veteran safety Jaquan Brisker as the player the Steelers need to add on the open market.
“Last season’s safeties in Pittsburgh are free agents with the exception of DeShon Elliott and, if you want to consider him a safety, Jalen Ramsey. That’s why the Steelers need to attack this packed safety free agent class,” Schatz writes. “Brisker can play both deep or in the box, and he’s a hard-hitting safety who will fit the Steelers’ defensive personality. He missed 12 games in the 2024 season due to a concussion, but he had at least 90 combined tackles in each of his three healthy NFL seasons. Over his career, Brisker has recorded seven sacks, four interceptions and four forced fumbles.”
The Steelers’ secondary is in a state of flux entering free agency.
Though GM Omar Khan made it clear that Jalen Ramsey will be with the franchise in 2026, and DeShon Elliott is on a good timeline to return from his season-ending knee injury, the Steelers still have some major holes. That includes at both safety and cornerback.
The 2026 NFL Draft offers a better path forward at cornerback for the Steelers, but at safety free agency might be the best way to go. And Brisker makes a great deal of sense.
He can he play in the box and handle a deep-coverage role. He’s also a physical defender who knows what it’s supposed to look like with the Steelers as a Pittsburgh native who grew up in Monroeville and attended Gateway High School before starring at Penn State.
Across four seasons with the Chicago Bears after being a second-round pick, Brisker has played 3,214 snaps and earned a grade of 64.9 overall from Pro Football Focus. He’s logged 1,238 snaps in the box, 1,205 at free safety, 339 snaps along the defensive line, 330 snaps in the slot and 101 snaps at corner, according to PFF.
He’s recorded 342 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 7.0 sacks and four interceptions.
Now, he’s set to hit the open market and could cash in. PFF projects him to land a three-year, $25 million deal with $17 million guaranteed. That seems reasonable for a versatile defender who is still relatively young and continues to produce at a high level. Pairing him next to Elliott moving forward would give the Steelers two safeties who are comfortable wearing multiple hats while providing a great deal of physicality, too.