Stampede Blue
Injuries have been the story so far, but there is still time to write the ending.
What is better than a hometown kid playing for the city’s professional team? George Hill did it for the Pacers, and JuJu Brent is doing it for the Indianapolis Colts after being drafted in the second round of the 2023 NFL draft. Expectations were high for the Warren Central product as the hope was he could be a missing piece to shore up the secondary. Hopes are still high but injuries are causing frustrations for fans and especially Brents. Everyone is wanting 2025 to be a fresh start and the beginning of a healthy stretch.
A healthy stretch would certainly buck a trend that has established itself over Brents’ first two seasons. Brents started his career with a wrist injury which made him miss valuable time as a rookie and later, suffered a hamstring injury that caused him to missed portions of training camp and the start of the season. After missing the first two games to start 2023, Brents flashed some potential. It was looking like the storm had passed. Unfortunately, a quadriceps injury caused him to miss additional action. To top it all off, another hamstring injury occurred in week 18.
It was a brutal start to a career, yet somehow his sophomore season went even worse. It only took a portion of one game to sustain a knee injury that cost him the rest of the season minus week 18. The hand wringing over his future is impossible to avoid, but if Brents can stay healthy he has a wonderful opportunity to earn a starting role opposite Ward. There will be competition, and Chris Ballard has said he openly welcomes just that this year. Any playing time will have to be earned. If Brents can get on and stay on the field, the feeling is he will shine and show why he was a second round pick.
Fans are in JuJu Brent’s corner. Hometown kid or not, watching a young player struggle through injuries makes for a story and player that anyone can get behind. Brents could be the key to things clicking in the secondary. Pairing him with the current slotted starters would make this secondary formidable. With so much time between now and the start of the season, all fans can do is wish Brents good health and good luck.
