Steelers sign Bears safety Jaquan Brisker to one-year deal

Brian Batko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Mar 12, 2026

Published in Football

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PITTSBURGH — In a year that the NFL draft is coming to Pittsburgh, one of the Steelers’ biggest additions in free agency also comes from the 412.

Jaquan Brisker, a hard-hitting safety who spent the past four seasons with the Chicago Bears, is signing a one-year contract with his hometown team. Brisker, who turns 27 next month, was a second-round pick out of Penn State in 2022.

Originally from Wilkinsburg, Brisker starred at Gateway High School before becoming a dominant defensive back at Lackawanna College, a two-year program in Scranton. A 6-foot-1, 204-pound Swiss Army knife, as he referred to himself a season ago, Brisker has 214 career tackles, four interceptions, four forced fumbles, seven sacks and 21 pass breakups in the regular season.

Brisker didn’t miss a game in 2025 and also made his first two postseason appearances. But he played in only five games in 2024 after entering concussion protocol in Week 6.

That was a scary time for Brisker, who has a history of concussions dating to 2022. When healthy, he has lined up at free safety, strong safety and nickelback.

Brisker logged 508 snaps as a deep safety, 421 in the box, 164 on the line of scrimmage and 103 in the slot in 2025, per Pro Football Focus charting. Advanced coverage statistics can be subjective, but PFF tagged Brisker for four touchdowns allowed and Pro Football Reference had him with five. Both sites had him with the highest passer rating when targeted of his career.

The Steelers have a need at safety next to starter DeShon Elliott, who traditionally has been more of an enforcer against the run than a playmaker in the post. Brisker now is an option to either run alongside Elliott in certain structures or play over top of him in center field. There’s also the presence of Jalen Ramsey, who transitioned from cornerback to safety last season.

But if Brisker is a key cog in Patrick Graham’s defense under Mike McCarthy, Ramsey could play more inside cornerback, if not solidifying that role full time. The Bears replaced Brisker with Coby Bryant, who started at safety in the 2025 season for the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.

Brisker should be an upgrade over Juan Thornhill, the Steelers’ initial veteran addition at safety this time a year ago. The Steelers wound up cutting Thornhill midway through the season and cycled through the likes of Chuck Clark, Kyle Dugger and even Jabrill Peppers as Elliott missed all but five games with injuries.

On Instagram, Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. — who played with Brisker at Penn State — posted, “Back in the 412. Let’s run this back,” with a photo of those two as Nittany Lions. Brisker ran a 4.45-second 40-yard dash at the combine and was a second-team All-American as a redshirt senior.