With the 44th pick, the Indianapolis Colts selected Julius “JuJu” Brents in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Brents was born and raised in Indianapolis, IN and went to Warren Central High School which is located about 10 miles from Lucas Oil Stadium. He was ranked as the best cornerback in his class which made him a steal in the second round. In his rookie campaign with Indy, Brents quickly became a starter and quickly embraced the pressure of covering top-tier receivers.
A Look at Indianapolis Colts Cornerback JuJu Brent’s Rookie Season
He Possessed an Ability to Cover One-On-One
JuJu Brents appeared in 9 games for the Indianapolis Colts last season and started 8 of them. Within those starts, he had to go up against high-quality receivers such as Zay Flowers, Davante Adams, Calvin Ridley, and DeAndre Hopkins. Against these four receivers, he gave up 19 receptions on 36 targets for 203 yards, including five pass breakups. While these statistics are not shut-down-corner-type stats, they do put the spotlight on Brent’s ability to go up against some of the best.
He managed a target separation of 1.9 and had a man-coverage success rate of 53.5%. The key is that he wins more than he loses when going one-on-one and in today’s offensive-friendly league, that is not an easy feat to achieve. With Brents being able to manage these kinds of stats as a rookie, one can assume that the longer he plays, the better he will become.
He Possessed the Ability to be Quick to the Ball
The key to being quick to the ball is going toward the ball and not the receiver. In the game of football, the ball is the most important element. Top-tier cornerbacks recognize that and do everything they can to make plays to stop the ball from progressing. Brents racked up 30 solo tackles including a crucial forced fumble that ignited the Colts defense against the Baltimore Ravens. He also allowed only 103 yards after the catch and only had 5 missed tackles in 9 games. These statistics are important because he did give up a 65.4 completion percentage and 13.9 yards per reception. Thus signifying that Brents can keep everything in front of him as he rarely allowed for anything to go over his head. Also, keeping in mind that he did go up against some of the league’s best as a rookie.
He Possessed the Attributes to be Elite Moving Forward
While Brents still has a lot to learn, he does possess all of the tools to go up against the best. Brents came into the 2023 season at six foot, 3 inches with an arm length of 34 inches. He also has a 41.5 inch vertical and ran a 4.53. To further delve into the possibilities of Brents, he did manage 43 total tackles, one interception, one forced and one recovered fumble. He also only gave up two touchdowns, one of which was the 75-yard bomb to Nico Collins in week 18. Up until week 18, however, Brents never gave up anything close to that kind of production on one play. This further speaks to all that he was able to accomplish in the weeks prior.
The future is bright for this young man. Colts defensive coordinator Gus Bradley will certainly look to Brents as a key piece in this secondary moving forward.
Main Photo Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
