The Chicago Bears have clinched the NFC North and a playoff berth for the first time in a while. Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson have transformed this team in a great way.
But, they're not the only ones who've made big changes this season. The defense has forced an incredible amount of turnovers, but their Week 17 performance, despite an opening play pick-six, was not nearly good enough.
After the game, Bears defensive back Jaquan Brisker, according to ESPN's Courtney Cronin, shared a brutal self-evaluation on his and the defense's performance against the San Francisco 49ers after the 42-38 loss.
Bears' Jaquan Brisker shares brutal self-eval amid 42-38 loss to 49ers
"We let the offense down," Brisker said. "I'm going to say it. We let the offense down, period. I feel like Caleb and them, they gave us enough points to do what we had to do to win. The defense didn't."
The defense struggled in a big way against the 49ers in Week 17, allowing Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, and a George Kittle-less offense to put up 42 points.
While the Bears had a chance to win it on the final play of the game, and could've cemented their status as the NFC's number 2 seed at worst, the Bears came up short.
Brisker and the Bears' defense had their worst performance of the season. While they allowed 52 points to the Detroit Lions in Week 2 of the 2025 season, this week's performance was even more brutal.
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The offense at that point was still figuring out its identity, and in the early part of the season, most teams are still figuring things out.
But now, with the playoffs right around the corner, the Bears' performance against the 49ers is cause for concern. If the defense cannot improve, then they'll be at risk of losing in the playoffs to one of the top teams that end up as a wild card.
Brisker's comments don't mince words, but they're an accurate description of where things stand for this Bears defense. They need to be better; otherwise, a deep playoff run won't be likely for the Bears.
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