Jaquan Brisker

Bears Place S Jaquan Brisker On IR

November 17th, 2024 at 12:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

NOVEMBER 17: Poles does not sound optimistic that Brisker will return this year. In a statement that Cronin passes along, Poles said that Brisker “just wasn’t making the progress that we wanted. We also know from a performance standpoint, when you’re out of football for a while, there has to be a ramp up period to get your body in shape, to play the game and avoid other injuries such as soft tissue injuries. … So we’re going to slow this down and take time and allow him to take his time to come back. Would love to see him back this year, but we’re just going to take it one week at a time.”

NOVEMBER 14: Although staff turmoil has engulfed the Bears once again, the team has seen a concerning situation develop in its secondary. Jaquan Brisker is heading to IR because of a concussion.

The starting Chicago safety has been in the protocol since suffering a head injury in Week 5, ESPN.com’s Courtney Cronin notes. This IR placement will lead to four more missed games. A 2022 second-round pick, Brisker has been a starter throughout his NFL career. He has also suffered three concussions in three seasons.

While this will give Brisker more time to recover, concussions rarely result in IR trips. This placement coming five weeks after the injury occurred introduces more cause for concern. Brisker started 15 games in each of his first two seasons and was in the Bears’ lineup for the team’s first five contests this year. This concussion has since defined his third NFL season, and the Penn State product will be shut down until mid-December.

Drafted in Ryan Poles‘ first offseason, Brisker joined a rebuilding team. He has since been one of the building blocks acquired on defense, joining Tyrique Stevenson and Kyler Gordon as second-round picks installed as starting DBs. As the Bears have not seen Caleb Williams show too much just yet, their defense has helped hold down the fort. Chicago’s defense ranks seventh in scoring and 13th in yards yielded.

The Bears had ruled out Brisker early in the week before their Week 10 and Week 11 games, with the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs pointing to more optimism about this injury existing prior to that. It is too early to speculate about Brisker’s career, but this concussion will cost him at least eight games. That is certainly on the high end. Brisker came into this season after undergoing thumb surgery as well.

Chicago, which cut Eddie Jackson and signed Kevin Byard this offseason, have turned to 2022 seventh-round pick Elijah Hicks in Brisker’s stead. Pro Football Focus has viewed Hicks as a solid replacement, ranking him ninth among all safeties — albeit on just 157 snaps — this season.

Bears S Jaquan Brisker Undergoes Thumb Surgery

August 20th, 2022 at 9:50pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Bears received some encouraging news earlier today about one of their top defenders. One of their other projected starters, however, has begun his NFL career with an injury which could threaten his regular season availability to start the season.

Rookie safety Jaquan Brisker recently underwent surgery on his thumb, reports NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). He suffered the injury during the team’s first preseason contest against the Chiefs, and has been sidelined ever since. The recovery process will be closely monitored, given the degree to which the second-rounder has stood out in training camp and his projected role on the team.

“Sometimes you wake up with these hand injuries, and it just shows up,” head coach Matt Eberflus said, via The Athletic’s Adam Jahns (subscription required). “It feels like you just kind of tweaked it a little bit and all the sudden the next day there it is. So it was one of those deals.”

Brisker took a step forward in each of his three seasons at Penn State. In his junior year, he produced 63 tackles, including six for a loss, two interceptions and five pass breakups. Those numbers made him one of the top safeties in the draft, and gave him a path to significant playing time right away with the Bears.

ESPN’s Courtney Cronin tweets that head coach Matt Eberflus is “hopeful” Brisker will be recovered in time for the team’s regular season opener against the 49ers. Likewise, Rapoport adds that there is a “real chance” he is able to suit up for Week 1. Brisker is slated to operate as the team’s starting strong safety, so a return in time for September would be a boost to the rebuilding Bears. If he misses time, though, they would likely turn to free agent addition Dane Cruikshank to partner with Eddie Jackson on the backend.

Bears Sign S Jaquan Brisker, Wrap Up Draft Class

July 26th, 2022 at 8:56pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bears have officially signed their entire draft class. ESPN’s Courtney Cronin reports (on Twitter) that the Bears have signed second-round safety Jaquan Brisker.

Following a freshman season at Lackawanna, Brisker transferred to Penn State. He ended up spending three seasons with the Nittany Lions, seeing time in 34 games. He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors and a second-team All-American nod in 2021 after finishing with 38 tackles, six tackles for loss, five passes defended, and two interceptions.

The Bears selected Brisker with the No. 46 pick in the 2022 draft, making him the fifth cornerback off the board. Chicago used the second-round selection that they acquired in the Khalil Mack deal with Los Angeles. The rookie is expected to slide into the starting lineup, with Dane Cruikshank and Michael Joseph providing depth at strong safety.

“I gave him a big hug when I saw him,” GM Ryan Poles said today. “He’s headed in the right direction and I’m excited to see what he does this training camp.”

With the signing, the Bears have signed their entire draft class:

Round 2: No. 39 Kyler Gordon, CB (Washington) (signed)
Round 2: No. 48 (from Chargers) Jaquan Brisker, S (Penn State) (signed)
Round 3: No. 71 Velus Jones, WR (Tennessee) (signed)
Round 5: No. 168 (from Bills) Braxton Jones, OT (Southern Utah State) (signed)
Round 5: No. 174 (from Bengals): Dominique Robinson, OLB (Miami University) (signed)
Round 6: No. 186 Zach Thomas, OG (San Diego State) (signed)
Round 6: No. 203 (from Bills) Trestan Ebner, RB (Baylor) (signed)
Round 6: No. 207 (from 49ers through Jets and Texans): Doug Kramer, OG (Illinois) (signed)
Round 7: No. 226 (from Giants through Bengals): Ja’Tyre Carter, C (Southern) (signed)
Round 7: No. 254 (from Chargers) Elijah Hicks, S (California) (signed)
Round 7: No. 255 (from Chargers) Trenton Gill, P (NC State) (signed)

49ers Notes: Lance, Tart, Mitchell, McGlinchey

April 26th, 2022 at 12:00pm CST by Adam La Rose

In a wild offseason which has seen a number of sizable quarterback trades, one of the most significant storylines has to do with a move which hasn’t taken place. With almost (if not every) 2022 starting QB spot already spoken for, Jimmy Garoppolo remains on San Francisco, something which may not change for the foreseeable future. General manager John Lynch pushed back against reports that, even if he is retained, Garoppolo will cede the starting job to 2020 first-rounder Trey Lance.

“All these reports, I don’t know where they all come from” Lynch said, via Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports. “We always believe in competition, but at the same time we are great believers in what [Lance] brings to the table. We believe he is ready. He is going to have to show that. I think he’s ready to show that to us, show that to his teammates, and show that to the world.”

Garoppolo has been thought to be on the trading block since the 49ers traded up to select Lance third overall last year. It came as no surprise that the veteran openly discussed a future destination other than San Francisco after the season ended, but shoulder surgery has complicated his trade market, which was already weighed down by his $26.9MM cap number for 2022. Even if Garoppolo does stay with the team into the fall, Lynch’s remarks still point to Lance at least having the inside track for the No. 1 role.

Here are some other notes out of the Bay Area:

The team’s secondary has undergone plenty of change this offseason, and it appears at least one safety spot will look different come next year. Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that Jaquiski Tartt “isn’t expected to return”. The 30-year-old has spent all seven of his NFL seasons with the 49ers, but the team has done homework on a number of secondary prospects, including Penn State’s Jaquan Brisker, Branch notes.
Running back Elijah Mitchell said yesterday that he underwent a minor procedure on his knee this offseason (Twitter link via Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury). A sixth-round pick last year, Mitchell enjoyed a productive rookie campaign, totalling 1,100 yards and six touchdowns. He added that he will “definitely” be ready for training camp.
The same will likely be true of right tackle Mike McGlinchey. The 27-year-old suffered a season-ending quadriceps tear in November. As Branch notes (on Twitter), however, the former top-10 pick expects to have recovered in time for the summer.

Penn State WR Jahan Dotson Declares For Draft

December 29th, 2021 at 9:14pm CST by Ely Allen

Jahan Dotson is going pro. On Monday, the fourth-year junior (the 2020 season didn’t count against eligibility) out of Penn State tweeted his intent to skip the Outback Bowl versus Arkansas and declare for the 2022 NFL Draft.

Spending his first two years on a talented depth chart, Dotson made splash plays here and there while current pros KJ Hamler and Pat Freiermuth pulled attention in the passing game.

In a 2020 season shortened by COVID-19, Dotson had a breakout year catching 52 passes for 884 yards and 8 touchdowns in only nine games. This year, Dotson picked up right where he left off, catching 91 balls for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns as the Nittany Lions’ bona fide number one receiver.

Dotson is joined in opting out of the bowl game by red-shirt senior safety Jaquan Brisker. Brisker is commonly seen as the second-ranked safety in the NFL Draft behind Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton.

While neither Dotson nor Brisker are guaranteed to hear their name called on day one, they’ve both shown an ability to make big plays. If there is a run on receivers or a safety-needy playoff team, Penn State could see two players’ names called in the first round.