Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles is very likely to have his hands tied when it comes to bringing back safety Jaquan Brisker, who's set to have an inflated market value this offseason when he hits unrestricted free agency in a few weeks.
Brisker's projected AAV is over $11 million per season, via Spotrac. Projections have Brisker signing a three-year deal this March. Unfortunately, Brisker may have played so well that the Bears will be priced out this offseason.
Poles may have said it without saying it in January while discussing Chicago's imminent free agent decisions. Kevin Byard sounds like a priority in the safety room. Brisker does not.
“I think Kevin is a special player. I have no problem saying that’s a player that we would like to have back. But again, when you add the other safeties into that mix and all the other decisions we have across the roster — cap restraints, things like that — it will be a challenge, but that’s part of what we do," Poles said.
“It’s really tough and I know I’ve talked about those tough decisions in the past. I think what changes is when you win, bonds and relationships get deeper. Knowing that right now we sit over the cap, we gotta make some decisions, if that’s cuts, if that’s trades. There’s real relationships of people that gave it up for the Chicago Bears to advance our organization, and they may not be able to stay and that sucks to be honest with you.”
Jaquan Brisker Proved Himself on the Biggest Stage
Brisker earned every penny he's about to get with a standout showing during a 20-17 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Divisional Round. He had 14 tackles (6 assists), a sack, a tackle for loss, and two pass deflections against Los Angeles.
That was needed for Brisker after an up-and-down regular season. His counting stats were solid, with 93 tackles, one interception, eight passes defended, and a sack in over 1,000 snaps, but he allowed four touchdowns in coverage. Brisker was better at tracking down and racking up tackles than he was at ball-hawking downfield. All told, Brisker would be a better fit at linebacker with more size.
Brisker chose the best time to look like a stud, and chose a stout Rams offensive front to prove himself against. His agent, Athletes First's Andre Odom, is also about to be a rich man from Brisker's well-timed strides this past January.
Now, the question is whether his next contract fits within the plans Chicago has for the offseason or if the Bears will have to risk letting the veteran defender sign elsewhere as Poles weighs all of his options.