Jaquan Brisker

Jaquan Brisker

Brisker with Penn State in 2021
No. 9 – Chicago Bears
Position:	Safety
Personal information
Born:	(1999-04-20) April 20, 1999 (age 24) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:	200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school:	Gateway (Monroeville, Pennsylvania)
College:	Lackawanna (2017–2018) Penn State (2019–2021)
NFL draft:	2022  / Round: 2 / Pick: 48
Career history
Chicago Bears (2022–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
Second-team All-American (2021) First-team All-Big Ten (2021) Third-team All-Big Ten (2020) NJCAA First-team All-American (2018)
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Total tackles: 209 Sacks: 5.0 Forced fumbles: 3 Fumble recoveries: 2 Pass deflections: 11 Interceptions: 2
Player stats at NFL.com  ·  PFR

Jaquan Monte Brisker (born April 20, 1999) is an American football safety for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Lackawanna College and Penn State prior to being selected by the Bears 48th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Early years

Brisker grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended Gateway High School in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, where he played basketball and football. ^[1]

Brisker was initially recruited by several major college football programs until it became apparent that he would be academically ineligible to play NCAA Division I football due to a low SAT score. ^[2] He instead enrolled at Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pennsylvania over offers from Youngstown State, Toledo, and California University of Pennsylvania. ^[3]

College career

Lackawanna College

Brisker began his collegiate career at Lackawanna College. ^[4] After his freshman season, Brisker committed to transfer to Penn State over offers from Alabama, Ole Miss, Maryland, Mississippi State, Pittsburgh, Utah, and West Virginia. ^[5] As a sophomore, he had 64 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and nine sacks with five passes broken up, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. ^[6]

Penn State

In his first season at Penn State in 2019, Brisker played in 13 games and finished the year with 32 tackles, two interceptions, and three pass breakups. ^[7]

He was named a starter going into his senior season in 2020 and was named third-team All-Big Ten after recording 57 tackles, four passes broken up, and one interception. ^[8]

Brisker decided to utilize the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes who played in the 2020 season due to the coronavirus pandemic and return to Penn State in 2021. ^[9] During the 2021 season, Brisker was voted as a team captain while tallying 64 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions, five passes broken up, and a fumble recovery. On December 28, 2021, Brisker announced he would be skipping the 2022 Outback Bowl and declared for the 2022 NFL Draft. ^[10] He was voted as a second-team All-American, first-team All-Big Ten, and accepted an invite to the Senior Bowl (later electing to opt-out). ^{[11] [12]}

College statistics

Season	GP	Tackles					Interceptions					Fumbles
		Solo	Ast	Cmb	TFL	Sck	Int	Yds	Avg	TD	PD	FR	FF	TD
Lackawanna College Falcons
2017	9	30	24	54	4.5	0.0	4	179	44.8	2	4	1	1	0
2018	10	54	11	65	17.0	9.0	0	0	0.0	0	5	1	2	1
Penn State Nittany Lions
2019	13	15	17	32	1.0	0.0	2	33	16.5	0	5	0	0	0
2020	9	33	24	57	3.0	0.0	1	18	18.0	0	7	0	0	0
2021	12	38	26	64	6.0	0.0	2	39	19.5	0	7	0	1	0
Career	53	170	102	272	31.5	9.0	9	269	29.9	2	28	2	4	1

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	20-yard shuttle	Three-cone drill	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 1+3⁄8 in (1.86 m)	199 lb (90 kg)	31+3⁄4 in (0.81 m)	9+7⁄8 in (0.25 m)	4.45 s	1.57 s	2.52 s	4.19 s	6.91 s	38.5 in (0.98 m)	10 ft 4 in (3.15 m)	22 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day [13] [14]

Brisker was drafted by the Chicago Bears with the 48th overall pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. ^[15] To obtain the pick, the Bears traded Khalil Mack to the Los Angeles Chargers, while also receiving a future sixth round pick. ^[16]

In his professional debut, during a 19–10 win over the San Francisco 49ers, Brisker recorded four tackles and recovered a fumble. ^[17] On October 24, against the New England Patriots, Brisker got his first career interception, off of Patriots quarterback Mac Jones. ^[18] On November 20, facing off against Atlanta Falcons Brisker went to tackle quarterback Marcus Mariota and got his head slammed into tight end MyCole Pruitt's back. Slow to get up Brisker was helped off the field. He missed just one snap on defense before returning to the game. In the third quarter, Brisker assisted a tackle on former Bears' return specialist Cordarrelle Patterson ending in him hitting the turf while grabbing his head. He returned to the next series and finished the game. ^[19] The next day, Brisker was diagnosed with a concussion and missed the next two games. ^[20] Brisker finished the season with 104 combined tackles, four sacks, two pass deflections, a forced fumble, and recovery, as well as an interception. ^[21] Following the regular season, Pro Football Focus named Brisker to the 2022 All-Rookie Team. ^[22] He was also voted as the Bears' Rookie of the Year by CBS Sports Chicago. ^[23]

NFL career statistics

Year	Team	Games		Tackles				Interceptions						Fumbles
		GP	GS	Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	PD	Int	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	FF	FR	Yds	TD
2022	CHI	15	15	104	73	31	4.0	2	1	6	6.0	6	0	1	1	0	0
2023	CHI	12	12	85	54	31	1.0	8	1	0	0.0	0	0	2	0	0	0
Career		26	26	184	123	61	5.0	9	2	6	3.0	6	0	3	1	0	0

References

1. Sager, Joe (January 29, 2017). "Gateway football standout Brisker makes mark on basketball court". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
2. Batko, Brian (December 8, 2017). "Brother's memory drives former Gateway football standout Jaquan Brisker". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
3. Whalen, William (November 19, 2017). "Ex-Gateway football standout JaQuan Brisker drawing Division I looks". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
4. Snyder, Audrey (August 15, 2018). "Why JUCO safety Jaquan Brisker wanted to be at Penn State all along". The Athletic . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
5. Bodani, Frank (May 18, 2018). "Penn State recruiting run starts with one of the nation's top junior college players". York Daily Record . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
6. McGonigal, John (December 20, 2018). "Which 2019 signee could make an 'immediate impact' in Penn State's secondary?". Centre Daily Times . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
7. Gallen, Daniel (August 15, 2021). "Jaquan Brisker returns to Penn State ready to star in secondary". The Patriot-News . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
8. Juliano, Joe (August 10, 2021). "Penn State safety Jaquan Brisker returns to team for one reason: Making amends for last year". Philadelphia Inquirer . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
9. Lesmerises, Doug (July 8, 2021). "Penn State's Jaquan Brisker a great tackler who could put a big hit on Ohio State: Buckeyes' best opponents, No. 13". Cleveland.com . Retrieved September 20, 2021.
10. McGuire, Kevin (December 27, 2021). "Jaquan Brisker declares for NFL, will skip Outback Bowl". Nittany Lions Wire. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
11. Gallen, Daniel (December 13, 2021). "Penn State's Jaquan Brisker named second-team All-America by AP; Jahan Dotson, Jordan Stout make third team". The Patriot-News . Retrieved March 2, 2022.
12. McGuire, Kevin (February 1, 2022). "Jaquan Brisker reportedly opts out of Senior Bowl". Nittany Lion Wire. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
13. "Jaquan Brisker Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
14. "2022 Draft Scout Jaquan Brisker, Penn State NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
15. "2022 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
16. Mayer, Larry (April 29, 2022). "Bears pick safety Jaquan Brisker at No. 48 in Round 2". ChicagoBears.com. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
17. Schrock, Josh (September 12, 2022). "'We're letting people know:' Bears' rookies shine in win vs. 49ers". RSN. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
18. Zeglinski, Robert (October 24, 2022). "Bears' Jaquan Brisker picked Mac Jones off with one hand". USA TODAY. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
19. Weiderer, Dan (November 23, 2022). "Jaquan Brisker lands in the concussion protocol after twice being allowed to return to Sunday's Chicago Bears game". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
20. "Bears' Jaquan Brisker: Out of concussion protocol". CBSSports.com. December 12, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
21. "Jaquan Brisker 2022 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
22. Mayer, Larry (January 12, 2023). "Three Bears named to PFF's NFL All-Rookie Team". Chicago Bears. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
23. Taylor, Ryan (January 20, 2023). "Jaquan Brisker named Bears rookie of the year". RSN. Retrieved March 2, 2023.

External links

• Chicago Bears bio
• Penn State Nittany Lions bio
• Lackawanna Falcons bio