Chicago Bears safety Jaquan Brisker missed 12 straight games due to a concussion in a week 5 victory against the Carolina Panthers during the 2024 season. Head coach Ben Johnson has already confirmed that the Bears starter is medically cleared to begin Chicago’s 2025 offseason program.
Brisker is hoping to return to form and have a massive bounce-back season in 2025. One of the biggest keys to Brisker having a great fourth season is the new Bears defensive coordinator, Dennis Allen.
Dennis Allen was previously the head coach of the New Orleans Saints from 2022-2024 and also spent many years as the defensive coordinator and secondary coach for the Saints. His first stint was from 2008-2010, where the Saints’ secondary ranked third in the NFL in interceptions and also won a Super Bowl. His stint as defensive coordinator ran from 2015-2021, ranking in the top half of the NFL in many defensive categories.
Allen is an incredible defensive mind and should be able to bring the best out of his defensive players, including Brisker.
In a new interview with Kyle Odegard, Brisker revealed that he was nearly drafted to Allen’s former team in 2022.
Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen loved Jaquan Brisker in 2022
The Bears starter confirmed that Allen wanted the Saints to draft him with the 49th pick and that he previously met with Allen at the scouting combine.
“When we were in the draft, Dennis Allen and I met at the combine and they told me at 49 they were going to take me. They were going to pick me and I was like one pick away. So there was that connection always there.”
The Bears ended up taking Brisker just one pick before the Saints, Brisker was drafted to Chicago with the 48th pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Allen seems to have been a big fan of the Bears’ starting safety and should be able to give him a prominent role in his defensive scheme. Brisker also discussed how he is finally able to connect to the Bears defensive coordinator and that he still remembers what Allen taught him at the 2022 combine.
“Yeah, we both kind of brought it up. He’s like, finally, we get to connect. And, you know, you get to coach me, I can play for you. So it was a great moment, because at the combine, I had a great interview with them, and I love Coach Allen. I still remember what he was trying to teach me at the Combine and said that to him, and he was laughing.”
Jaquan Brisker praises Dennis Allen’s defensive scheme
Another interesting tidbit from Brisker’s interview was the praise he had for Dennis Allen’s defensive scheme. He explained how Allen’s defenses are known to be “DB friendly”.
“And what I think about the scheme is it’s DB friendly. It looks like the defensive backs are going make a lot of plays and fly around. Sometimes he’s aggressive, sometimes he’s not. He’s changing it up. And then I just know he’s been top-five over a couple years. His defenses have been great.”
Allen’s defenses have been known for their secondaries being ball-hawks. It looks like that won’t change in Chicago. Brisker is a versatile player who has shown he can be a ball-hawk, but also is very agressive where he can get to the quarterback.
Brisker should be able to thrive in Chicago’s new defensive scheme. If the safety can stay healthy, he could be on the verge of an incredible comeback season.
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