The Pittsburgh Steelers hired local product Mike McCarthy as their new head coach this offseason. The Steelers will also have a new Pittsburgh native on defense — safety Jaquan Brisker.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported Thursday evening the Steelers signed Brisker to a contract in free agency.
Brisker attended Gateway High School. He also played college football at Penn State, where he was roommates with Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo reported the Steelers signed Brisker on a 1-year contract worth $5.5 million.
The Chicago Bears selected Brisker at No. 48 overall in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. In four seasons, he started 52 games for the Bears.
Brisker posted 342 combined tackles, including 12 tackles for loss. He also had 11 quarterback hits, seven sacks, 21 pass defenses, four forced fumbles and four interceptions with Chicago.
Steelers Signing Safety Jaquan Brisker: Report
Entering 2026 NFL free agency, the Steelers had a thin safety group because of pending free agents.
But during the first week of free agency, the Steelers added both Brisker and fellow veteran Darnell Savage. The two safeties played against each other in the Bears-Green Bay Packers rivalry the past few years.
While the Steelers added Savage mostly as insurance, Brisker should start for Pittsburgh’s defense next season. He was one of the top safeties available in the free agency market this offseason.
The Athletic’s Daniel Popper ranked Brisker the No. 6 safety and No. 65 overall player on his free agent list.
“Brisker is a solid blitzer and run defender from depth. His 12 pressures ranked seventh among safeties in 2025. He will be attractive for defenses that major in two-high pre-snap shells. He can play in the deep part of the field, and he has the burst to impact the run game from an out-of-the-box alignment,” wrote Popper.
“Brisker is not a physically imposing run defender when you get a hat on him. He lacks some pop against bigger blockers, and there was some up-and-down tackling on film. Offenses can also pick on Brisker in coverage at times by flooding zones and running rub routes.”
Popper projected Brisker to receive a 4-year, $42 million contract in 2026 free agency. His market didn’t come anywhere close to materializing to that level.
The Steelers are paying Brisker only half of Popper’s projected average annual salary and on just a 1-year deal.
Savage was also a bargain for Pittsburgh. Over the Cap reported Savage’s deal was a 1-year, $1.3 million contract.
Steelers Safety Depth for 2026 Campaign
Entering 2026 free agency, the Steelers were set to lose Kyle Dugger, Chuck Clark, Jabrill Peppers and Miles Killebrew at safety in free agency.
Killebrew officially departed Thursday, signing a deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
That’s a lot of bodies to replace. But the arrival of Brisker and Savage should really help.
The Steelers were already set to return two starting safeties from last season — Jalen Ramsey and DeShon Elliott. The team also has 2025 undrafted free agent Sebastian Castro on the offseason roster.
With Brisker, the Steelers could plan to start him and Elliott at safety and then take advantage of Ramsey’s greatest strength — his versatility. Depending on who’s in and out of the lineup on any given week, Ramsey could line up at nickel cornerback, outside cornerback and safety.
At cornerback, the Steelers signed Jamel Dean to starter opposite Porter. The team also re-signed former Los Angeles Chargers starter Asante Samuel Jr. on Monday.
Steelers Make $5.5 Million Defensive Move for Pittsburgh Native: Report