Ten Most Important Bears Players: Jaquan Brisker |
The 2024 NFL season is right around the corner, and for the Chicago Bears, this could be one of their most anticipated seasons in recent memory. From drafting Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze to trading for Keenan Allen and their free-agent pickups, things are looking bright for this team.
However, for this team to achieve the goals they have set for this season, it will take a collective team effort, although some players may have a bigger impact than others. One of those players happens to be third-year safety Jaquan Brisker (ranked No. 8 on our list), who could be on the verge of a breakout season this year. With Eddie Jackson no longer on this team, the Bears' defense will look much different, especially regarding the safety position. Jackson was on this team for eight seasons and was one of their defensive leaders until the last two years. When the Bears elected to draft Brisker three years ago, the hope was that he would eventually take over for Jackson, and that time appears to be now. Known for being one of the best trash talkers on the field, Brisker can talk the talk and walk the walk even if he hasn't reached his full potential on the field. Every team has a QB that runs the offense, but you also need a QB type of player to run your defense. Brisker could be the guy to take over the QB duties on defense as the Bears look to take that next step as a unit. Looking back at his second season in the NFL, there was no sophomore slump, as Brisker was one of the best players on defense for the Bears and was arguably a top-five safety. He finished the season with 105 total tackles, three for loss, one sack, three QB hits, five pressures, one interception, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. The next step for him would be to come away with a few more turnovers, as he wants to be the playmaker Jackson once was. The 25-year-old Brisker entered his second season with extremely high expectations after showing plenty of potential during his rookie season. Not only did he live up to those expectations, but he surpassed them, further proving that the Bears did a fantastic job drafting him when they did. The next step in becoming a complete player is to build off last season, as he will again have plenty of expectations put on his abilities this season. What stands out the most about last season is how he battled adversity to put up the numbers he did. Early in the season, Brisker was dealing with some nagging injuries that forced him to miss two games, and once he returned, he did have some issues dealing with missed tackles, which hurt the Bears at times. Once he figured that out, he was one of the best safeties in the game, and that alone is a big reason why the Bears defense took the leaps they did during the second half of the season. You could make a case that Brisker had his coming out party in week 14 when he put on an absolute clinic against the Detroit Lions. In that game, he came away with 17 tackles, one forced fumble, and two pass breakups in a 28-13 win. Like Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson, Brisker is one of the many returning starters in the secondary, but will have a new running mate in Kevin Byard this season. He will need to get along with Byard as quickly as possible, as those two will play a crucial role in the Bears' overall success this season. Primarily a strong safety his first two seasons, you could see Brisker move to free safety this season or show much more versatility in his game to make him a more complete player. Either way, Brisker will play a massive part in a very young and talented defense with top-five potential written all over it. As long as he can continue to back up his trash talk on the field with his play, the Bears will have another young star to build around for the foreseeable future.
