30 Most Important Bears of 2023: No. 11 Jaquan Brisker

The Chicago Bears are gearing up for the 2023 NFL season, which features plenty of new and returning faces within the organization. There are a number of players, coaches and front office members that are crucial to the team’s success this season.

Every day from now until the start of training camp, we’re counting down our 30 Most Important Bears for the 2023 season. We’ll recap their 2022 season, look ahead to 2023 and tackle the biggest question facing them this year.

Up next at No. 11 is safety Jaquan Brisker, the standout rookie from last year who could be on the verge of stardom this season.

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Position: Safety

Age: 24

Experience: 2nd season

2023 cap hit: $1.671 million

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General manager Ryan Poles shocked Bears fans when he selected Brisker with the No. 48 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. The expectation was the Bears would target an offensive player after selecting Kyler Gordon a few picks earlier, but drafting Brisker proved to be a smart decision. The former Penn State standout made an immediate impact, recovering a fumble in Week 1 and recording a crucial tackle that helped secure a victory. That would be a precursor for the rest of the season as the rookie shined, whether he was making plays in coverage or blitzing the quarterback. Brisker finished the year with 104 tackles (five for a loss), four sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, two passes defensed, and one interception in 15 games. His four sacks led the team and his 104 tackles were second.

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Expectations are high for Brisker and the entire secondary as a whole. Four out of five starters are due to return and Brisker is arguably the most valuable. His versatility was on display during his rookie season and with a year under his belt, there’s no telling how the Bears might use him on the field. Brisker elevates the play of those around him and that was evident by Eddie Jackson’s renaissance last year. Playing next to Brisker, Jackson was able to play within his position and returned to the ball-hawking safety fans grew to love a few years ago. With a new linebacking corps in place and an improved defensive line, Brisker should see more opportunities to be a playmaker in every facet of the defense.

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Expectations were high for Brisker his rookie year but he certainly met and exceeded them. But how high is his ceiling exactly? Brisker possesses a unique skillset, showing the ability to play physical at the line of scrimmage but also be able to drop back in coverage and cover receivers effectively. Quarterbacks only completed 56% of their passes when targeting Brisker in 2022. There are areas he does need to work on, however. Brisker struggled with identifying running lanes last year, shooting the wrong gap at times that led to big runs from opposing offenses. Despite those miscues, Brisker was easily the team’s defensive MVP in 2022 and his potential is arguably higher than anyone else’s on that side of the ball. There’s even a chance he’s regarded as one of the league’s best safeties when the season ends.