Tag: juju brents

Colts designate CB JuJu Brents to return from injured reserve to practice

The Indianapolis Colts have designated CB JuJu Brents to return from injured reserve and to the practice field.

Before practice Wednesday, Indianapolis Colts’ head coach Shane Steichen announced that cornerback JuJu Brents would be designated to return to the practice field.

Brents suffered an MCL knee injury in the Colts’ season opener against Houston. He was placed on injured reserve a few days later and it was initially reported that the injury could be season-ending.

With Brents now designated to return, that opens up a 21-day window for him to be added back to the Colts’ active roster. Whether it be Day 1 or Day 21, he can be activated at any time–it’s all dependent upon his health. Once that process takes place and Brents is back on the 53-man roster, he can then be available on Sundays.

Unfortunately for Brents, he has battled injuries since entering the NFL. During his 2023 rookie season, he would miss all of the team’s offseason programs and part of training camp and then appeared in just nine regular season games.

This past summer, a shoulder injury kept him out of the Colts’ preseason opener and a nose injury sustained early in the second preseason game would then keep him out of the finale.

For his career, which has spanned 10 games, Brents has allowed a completion rate of 67% on 55 targets at 14.6 yards per catch with five pass breakups and an interception.

Assuming we see Brents in a regular season game at some point in these final weeks, it’ll be interesting to see how the Colts divide up playing time at the cornerback position, given the emergence of Samuel Womack and the growth we’ve seen from Jaylon Jones.

As is the case for any young and experienced player, Brents is very much in need of reps for his own development.

(This article was updated to provide additional information.)

Colts sign CB Chris Lammons to 53-man roster with JuJu Brents on IR

With JuJu Brents being placed on IR, the Colts announced that they signed CB Chris Lammons to the 53-man roster.

With JuJu Brents being placed on injured reserve, the Indianapolis Colts announced that they signed cornerback Chris Lammons to the 53-man roster. Lammons was previously on the Colts’ practice squad.

Although Lammons didn’t make the Colts’ initial 53-man roster, he was elevated to the game day roster for Sunday’s Week 1 matchup with the Texans to provide special teams depth.

Lammons ended up playing 22 special teams snaps in that game across five different phases.

Lammons went undrafted in 2018 and has played 975 special teams snaps over his career, along with 239 on defense, primarily lining up in the slot. The 2023 season was his first with the Colts.

Unless the Colts plan to make a sudden change with Lammons, as a nickel cornerback, the team will likely look to either Dallis Flowers–who was a healthy scratch in the team’s Week 1 matchup–or Samuel Womack, who was claimed off waivers during roster cutdowns two weeks ago and has both slot and boundary experience.

The cornerback position was a big unknown for the Colts entering the 2024 season and those question marks have now only grown with Brents sidelined.

With Lammons on the active roster, the Colts now have a practice squad opening that needs to be filled. They very well could bring in another cornerback to join David Long, Jaylin Simpson, and Ameer Speed on the practice squad.

Update: it has been reported by Joel Erickson of the Indy Star that the Colts signed CB Kelvin Joseph to the practice squad.

Colts CB JuJu Brents reportedly being placed on season-ending IR

The Colts are reportedly placing CB JuJu Brents on season-ending IR with a knee injury.

The Indianapolis Colts will reportedly be without cornerback JuJu Brents for the remainder of the season.

According to Ian Rapoport, Brents is being placed on season-ending IR with a knee injury.

Stephen Holder of ESPN would add that Brents tweaked his knee in the Colts opener against Houston but pushed through and finished the game. Holder says the injury is “likely” season-ending but if he’s able to come back it’ll be in December.

Initially, according to the Indy Star’s Joel Erickson, it was thought to be a minor injury but the MRI showed otherwise.

Unfortunately for Brents, he’s battled injuries since entering the NFL. As a rookie in 2023, he would miss all of offseason programs and part of training camp. He then appeared in just nine regular season games.

This year, Brents would miss the first preseason game for precautionary reasons with a shoulder injury. He then exited the second preseason game with a nose injury that then kept him out of the preseason finale.

Brents secured a starting spot over the summer after putting together a strong training camp performance. Now a position group already filled with unknowns for the Colts has even more question marks without Brents.

As of now, the Colts could either start Dallis Flowers—who was a healthy scratch in Week 1–opposite of Jaylon Jones, or Samuel Womack, who the team claimed off waivers during roster cutdowns two weeks ago.

For depth, we could see Chris Lammons elevated or signed from the practice squad, and for a position with only five players on the 53-man roster prior to Brents’ injury, another addition, whether that be the active roster or practice squad will likely have to be made.

Update: the Colts announced that they signed Lammons to the 53-man roster.

3 X-Factors for Colts in Week 1 matchup vs. Texans

Here are three X-Factors for the Indianapolis Colts in their Week 1 matchup against the Houston Texans.

If the Indianapolis Colts are going to come away with the win against Houston, odds are that there best players will have to perform as such. But in football, the ultimate team game, there will be others who have to step up as well.

These players are known as the X-Factors. In this instance, an X-Factor is defined as a person who has a strong but also unpredictable influence on an outcome.

These are the players who, whether they perform well or if they struggle, their play will go a long way in dictating the outcome of Sunday’s matchup.

For the Colts, these three players in particular–the X-Factors–are going to have to play key roles against the Texans.

CB JuJu Brents

A strong performance from Brents would go a long way in providing much-needed stability in the secondary for the Colts–a unit that faces a hefty number of question marks this season.

Along with CJ Stroud under center for the Texans, at receiver this season are Stefon Diggs, Tank Dell, and Nico Collins. Completely stopping this trio is probably not likely, but being able to at least limit their production and the explosive plays when coupled with the Colts’ disruptive pass rush should form what is overall a very good defensive unit.

DT Raekwon Davis

The Colts’ defensive front should be one of the more disruptive units in football. However, if there’s an area of improvement from a season ago, it’s in how this group defends the run when Grover Stewart isn’t on the field.

The addition of Davis this offseason in free agency was, in part, supposed to provide a boost in that area. Collectively, if the Colts can slow the Texans’ run game, it will put their offense in predictable passing situations, where the pass rush can pin its ears back and the secondary has the advantage in coverage.

WR AD Mitchell

Without Josh Downs playing in this game, the Colts will need another pass catching option outside of Michael Pittman to emerge as a reliable target for Anthony Richardson.

Presumably, Mitchell is going to see the bulk of his snaps from the slot, where his combination or size, explosiveness, and route running can make him a difficult player to cover. With those traits, Mitchell has the ability to impact all levels of the field and doing so against the Texans when coupled with Jonathan Taylor and the run game will do wonders for the Colts’ offense as a whole.

ESPN picks Colts’ X-Factor for the 2024 NFL season

Ben Solak of ESPN recently picked his X-factor for each NFL team this season. Here is who he selected for the Colts.

ESPN’s Ben Solak recently selected his X-Factor for the Indianapolis Colts and the upcoming 2024 season.

As Solak notes, selecting an X-factor goes beyond the quarterback position or the star pass rusher and asks the question, which player’s performance–good or bad– will carry a significant impact on the team’s upcoming season.

For the Colts, Solak made what I believe is an excellent choice for this category, selecting cornerback JuJu Brents.

The Colts face a number of unknowns at the cornerback position entering the season. The only certainty is with Kenny Moore, but everything else from the starters on the boundary to the depth of this unit is a big question mark.

This is a position group that last season that was wildly inconsistent, surrendering too many big plays while not making enough plays on the football. And outside of Samuel Womack taking Darrell Baker’s spot on the roster, the makeup of the position group is almost identical to what it was in 2023.

Brents is coming off a solid training camp performance overall. Oftentimes it is in player’s second season where they make the biggest developmental jump, in large part because of being acclimated to the NFL game, along with being comfortable in the system and having a full offseason to work on their craft rather than preparing for the draft.

A leap from Brents would go a long way in providing stability at this position group. On the flip side, if Brents doesn’t take that step forward, the Colts very well could be in store for another up and down year at the cornerback position.

Like many young players, in order to make that leap what Brents really needs right now is reps. During his 2023 rookie season, he missed all of OTAs and part of training camp with an injury. He would then play in only nine regular season games.

Then this preseason, a shoulder injury would keep Brents out of the first preseason game and a nose injury out of the third preseason game. He ended up playing just 13 total snaps.

Whether Brents plays well this season or takes some lumps, his play is going to have a big impact on the Colts defense.

Two important players return to practice for the Colts on Wednesday

Two important players for the Indianapolis Colts returned to practice on Wednesday. Here’s what you need to know.

Following roster cutdowns on Tuesday, the Indianapolis Colts were back on the practice field on Wednesday, and returning were cornerback JuJu Brents and running back Trey Sermon, according to The Athletic’s James Boyd.

Brents suffered a nose injury in the Colts’ second preseason game against Arizona that required stitches and kept him sidelined up until today. Sermon, meanwhile, has been working through a hamstring injury that he sustained in Week 1 of the preseason against Denver.

Overall, Brents had put together a solid performance throughout training camp. But like any young player who missed time during his rookie season, regular reps are going to be vital for him.

We often hear about players making their biggest developmental jump in Year 2. The Colts are banking on Brents doing just that, given that the cornerback room looks mostly the same as it did in 2023.

The backup running back battle was thought to be one of the more intriguing competitions in training camp, but Sermon quickly established himself as the No. 2 behind Jonathan Taylor and never relinquished his grasp on that role.

Boyd also reported that Tanor Bortolini, who suffered a toe injury in the preseason finale against Cincinnati, was not seen at Wednesday’s practice. No timetable for his return has been established, although Shane Steichen did say that while Bortolini wasn’t going to miss extended time, he would miss some.

The transition from college to the NFL at the center position in particular can be a difficult jump to make, as offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter highlighted recently, but Bortolini was getting better each day, and went from playing with the third team offense to the second unit in the final preseason game.

The Colts went heavy on the offensive line, which inlcuded keeping Danny Pinter, who can be the backup center if Bortolini is still injured or not quite ready for that role.

The only other player on the 53-man roster who wasn’t practice was Josh Downs, who is progressing “really well” from his ankle injury, as Steichen put it.

Colts hopeful CB JuJu Brents can return to practice next week

Shane Steichen is hopeful that Colts’ cornerback JuJu Brents can return to practice next week as he deals with a nose injury.

Colts’ cornerback JuJu Brents was still sidelined during Sunday’s practice after sustaining a nose injury in Week 2 of the preseason against Arizona. However, head coach Shane Steichen had a positive update after practice.

“He’s progressing,” said Steichen. “Hopefully next week he’ll be ready to go next week.”

After missing the Colts’ preseason opener against Denver, Brents was one of the very few starters to see snaps against the Cardinals, with Steichen wanting to get him reps after not playing in the first game.

Brents would exit the game fairly early on after his helmet slipped down his face while making a tackle, leaving him bloodied. Brents was then seen in the locker room afterward with stitches.

By all accounts, Brents had put together a solid training camp performance overall, solidifying himself as one of the Colts’ starting outside cornerbacks.

However, like any young player, what Brents needs is more reps. A second-round selection by the Colts in 2023, Brents would miss offseason programs that spring and then a portion of training camp as well.

During the regular season of his rookie year, Brents would then appear in only nine games. Brents was held out of this year’s preseason opener for precautionary reasons with a shoulder injury. He would then miss the finale against Cincinnati, playing just 13 preseason snaps.

It is oftentimes during a player’s second NFL season that they make the biggest developmental jump. For a position group for the Colts that has its share of question marks heading into the regular season, a leap from Brents would go a long way in providing some needed stability, which the entire defensive unit will benefit from.

Colts’ CB JuJu Brents expected to return ‘sooner than later’

After leaving Saturday’s preseason game with a nose injury, Colts’ CB JuJu Brents is expected to return “sooner than later,” said Shane Steichen.

Following the Colts’ joint practice with the Cincinnati Bengals on Tuesday, head coach Shane Steichen said that he expected cornerback JuJu Brents to be back “sooner than later,” according to James Boyd of The Athletic.

Brents would exit the Arizona Cardinals game with a nose injury that occurred while making a tackle and his helmet slid down his face, leaving him bloody. Brents was seen in the locker room afterwards with stitches.

By all accounts, Brents has put together a very solid training camp overall, solidifying himself as one of the Colts’ starting boundary cornerbacks.

He does, however, need as many reps as he can get right now. A second-round pick by the Colts in 2023, Brents would miss offseason programs last spring and part of training camp while injured. He then appeared in only nine of the regular season games.

Brents has been mostly healthy this training camp, but did miss the preseason opener against Denver for precautionary reasons with a shoulder injury. It’s because of this missed time that he was playing in Saturday’s game against the Cardinals while just about every other starter sat out.

We often hear about the Year 2 leap for NFL players, and the Colts’ defense getting that from Brents would provide a massive boost to a secondary that has it’s share of question marks entering the 2024 season.

The Colts starters are expected to play about a quarter and a half in Thursday’s preseason finale.

Colts’ CB JuJu Brents ruled out vs. Cardinals with nose injury

It was announced that Colts’ CB exited the preseason game against Arizona with a nose injury. Here is what you need to know.

In the second quarter of the Colts’ preseason game with the Arizona Cardinals, it was announced that cornerback JuJu Brents exited the game with a nose injury and would not return.

Brents was one of a few Colts’ starters on defense who did end up suiting up and playing in this game. My guess is that this is because Brents missed last week’s game against Denver.

On the CBS4 broadcast, it was reported that Brents had a bloody nose on the sidelines but was in good spirits. Larra Overton would add that Brents had a “scrape,” which was causing him to bleed.

Brents took some lumps during Wednesday’s joint practice with Arizona but bounced back on Thursday. He has largely put together a very solid training camp and secured his position as one of the starting boundary cornerbacks.

Injuries limited Brents during his rookie season with him missing offseason programs in 2023 and part of training camp, along with him only appearing in nine games during the season. For a still relatively inexperienced player, any reps are quite valuable.

“You just piggyback and learn from all the vets, for real,” said Brents during OTAs. “The one guy I did just follow behind was K-Mo. Just trying to figure out his daily routines, even like off the field. How he goes about his daily stuff, taking care of his body. That’s big for me. Just continuing to learn how to be a pro in that aspect.”

With the question marks that the Colts have in the secondary, a Year 2 leap from Brents would come with a massive impact for not only the cornerback position, but this defense as a whole.

Colts’ CB JuJu Brents and DT DeForest Buckner back at practice on Wednesday

After sitting out of Sunday’s preseason opener, Colts’ CB JuJu Brents and DT DeForest Buckner were back for the team’s joint practice.

Both cornerback JuJu Brents and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner were back on the practice for the Colts on Wednesday, according to several members of the Colts’ media, as they faced the Arizona Cardinals in their first of two joint practices.

Brents and Buckner would both miss last Friday’s practice and neither would play in the preseason opener against Denver. Brents’ absence was precautionary on Sunday as he dealt with a shoulder injury.

For Buckner, it was a vet rest day. It remains to be seen if Buckner will play in any of the preseason games, which certainly isn’t a necessity for him.

Prior to Brents’ brief time missed, he was playing some of his best football of the summer. We’ve heard on a few occasions during the offseason and even from GM Chris Ballard right before camp began that the only certainty at cornerback was that Kenny Moore would be starting.

However, since offseason programs, Brents has been a mainstay in the starting defense.

“I feel great,” Brents said recently via Colts.com. “And I would say the main thing is my mentality. I ain’t got to come out here right now and think about doing this and that, now I can just allow my body to do it ’cause I’ve put that work in.”

Also returning to the practice field for the Colts on Wednesday was rookie linebacker Jaylon Carlies who had been dealing with a hip injury and missed the last several practices.

Prior to his injury, Carlies had caught the attention of the coaching staff with his coverage ability at the linebacker position as a former college safety–even seeing some snaps along side Zaire Franklin and EJ Speed as the Will linebacker in base.

As a first year player, however, he will now be playing catchup after missing some valuable time. It looks like when the Colts are lined up in their 4-3 base, Franklin will be the middle linebacker, Speed the Will, and Segun Olubi the Sam.

“You’ve seen us evolve to where a little bit like we’re willing to go, hey, let’s take a safety and maybe he hasn’t had a lot of opportunity to use his hands and strike and shed,” said defensive coordinator Gus Bradley.

“But we feel like, alright, we can coach that part up. That’s JC. He’s a safety that’s playing linebacker, but he’s got really good length and he has that mindset, he just has to develop the skill set.”