Why the Chicago Bears should give Jaquan Brisker what he wants

At the moment, Chicago Bears rookie second-round pick Jaquan Brisker doesn’t look like he’ll make the start of training camp due to his contract situation.

The holdup is squarely based on guaranteed money in the third year of Brisker’s contract — or, well, the lack thereof. At the moment, the Bears have not offered him guaranteed cash in his third year.

Brisker’s justifiable issue with this is the fact that the player drafted just in front of him, Washington Commanders defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis, was guaranteed over $110,000 in year three. In fact, every player drafted ahead of Brisker was given guaranteed money in his third year.

For some reason, Brisker is now the cutoff, because players drafted below him have not received the privilege of having that security.

The Chicago Bears must give Jaquan Brisker his desired guaranteed money in Year 3, and it’s easy to see why.

If you take a look at some of the players taken ahead of Brisker, and then compare those players to the situation at hand, it’s clear that the Bears need to get this done.

For example, the New York Giants took wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson at pick number 43. He got the guaranteed money in year three, yet comes into a situation that is extremely muddy. There are no guarantees he will start, as he’s competing with Kenny Golladay, Sterling Shepard, and Kadarius Toney for playing time ahead of him. The Giants also still have Darius Slayton.

Another great example is the Houston Texans selecting John Metchie ahead of Brisker, when the Texans have Brandin Cooks as the clear number one and Nico Collins ready to emerge as well. Metchie is not guaranteed a starting spot by any means.

Brisker came to the Bears in an obvious situation. He was always going to start. There is absolutely nobody ahead of him that will challenge for that starting gig. Does anyone think Dane Cruikshank or DeAndre Houston-Carson is going to challenge Brisker? If they do, they’re sadly mistaken.

Even the Seattle Seahawks took Kenneth Walker at pick number 41, yet all of the reports say that Rashaad Penny is still the clear number one back right now. Sure, Walker is the guy of the future so giving him some guarantees in Year 3 makes sense. But, the point remains.

Maybe the best example is the Baltimore Ravens giving their second rounder, David Ojabo, those guarantees after he’s coming off of one of the worst injuries a professional football player can endure: a torn Achilles.

Brisker is coming in and starting. There is no question about that. The sooner he’s with the team, the better. Chicago is in a situation where they don’t quite have the leverage necessary to stand firm, here, and for the sake of a rebuilding team trying to establish a strong core, Brisker’s deal needs to get done — and he deserves the guarantees in year three.