The Chicago Bears' season is officially over following Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Round. It was a magical first season under head coach Ben Johnson, but it's obvious that some roster changes must happen this offseason.
Several Bears contracts are set to expire soon, including safety Jaquan Brisker, who will enter free agency on a high note. Brisker was arguably Chicago's best defender in the loss to Los Angeles, making the conversation around a potential split that much harder.
Jaquan Brisker Enters the Offseason on High Note
In the divisional, Brisker was all over the field, constantly finding his way around the ball. He finished with a team-high 14 total tackles, two pass deflections, one tackle for lost yardage, and a sack. The way that defensive coordinator Dennis Allen used the 26-year-old was tremendous, putting his strengths on display.
Brisker single-handedly took over a drive in the second quarter. He started things off with a TFL on running back Kyren Williams. Brisker then came on a blitz to sack quarterback Matthew Stafford before making a pass deflection on 3rd-and-11 to get the defense off the field.
That kind of outing was impressive, considering it was in the biggest game of the year. Having a player rise to the occasion to be so impactful certainly helps him at the negotiating table. Throughout the season, there were times when fans felt like Brisker could have played better, especially in coverage.
According to Pro Football Focus, Brisker had a 50.9 coverage grade (76th among 98 graded safeties), giving up 322 receiving yards and four touchdowns during the regular season. The 119.3 passer rating he surrendered was also a new career-worst.
Yet, the former Penn State standout elevated his level of play in the postseason. He's going to hit free agency in March and knows this could have been his last game with the Bears. Following the contest, he spoke with reporters and stated he hopes to be back next season but has no idea if the organization feels the same, per Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times.
The Bears will have some tough decisions to make around this roster, as they enter the offseason with just $5.7 million in cap space, according to Spotrac. They must make some cuts and restructure some deals to create more cap space, but whether they want to spend some of that to keep Brisker remains to be seen.
Brisker's market value is listed at $10 million per season on Spotrac, projecting him to land a three-year, $30 million deal. The way he played in the postseason was impressive and shows the potential that he can have in this scheme.
He was one of the best players on the football field on Sunday night, which could help be a deciding factor in his return for 2026 and beyond. Brisker wants that. Now it's up to Chicago if the feeling is mutual, but things could be trending up after that performance.