Kelly: Dolphins’ adversity creates opportunity for JuJu Brents | Opinion
Juju Brents waited, worked, and leaned on his faith.
Nothing else the third-year cornerback could do after his NFL career took a traumatic turn, one in which he went from being a rookie starter with the Indianapolis Colts to a waiver-wire find for a cornerback-starved team in the span of 19 months.
“I ain’t new to this,” Brents said, shrugging his shoulders shortly after starting and playing well in Miami’s 30-13 win against the Buffalo Bills.
He provided tight coverage without committing a penalty most of the game. He had one major deflection on a downfield pass from Bills quarterback Josh Allen, stepping in front of the intended target to break up the completion. He recovered a fumble Jack Jones created.
“Stepping up as a starter and going out there competing at a high level,” Jones said addressing Brents’ performance. “I think JuJu played his [butt] off.”
The Bills scored a 35-yard touchdown on one of the few plays Brents was off the field as Buffalo seemingly went after Ethan Bonner.
With Rasul Douglas sidelined by foot injury he sustained last week Miami’s coaches had Brents competing all week with rookie cornerback Jason Marshall Jr. and Bonner, two young cornerbacks who had been in Miami’s program longer.
Brents was informed Saturday during the team’s walkthrough he had won the starting role.
“Since I’ve gotten here I’ve been stacking days, having good practices. I don’t feel like I did anything different,” said Brents, who contributed five tackles, a pass breakup and recovered a fumble. “Guys got hurt, and it was time for me to have an opportunity.”
Discovering what players such as Brents, Bonner and Marshall are capable of is what the second half of this Dolphins season should be about.
Winning games remains priority No. 1, but these coaches and evaluators need to help the next general manager discover who’s salvageable on the roster.
That’s exactly what Miami did in 2019, consistently claiming players off the waiver wire and other team’s practice squads, and then throwing them into the action. That’s how the Dolphins unearthed defensive lineman Zach Sieler after poaching a second-year player the Ravens intended to stash to their practice squad.
Brents is a 2023 second-round pick, a player who was selected earlier in the draft (pick No. 50) than all but 11 Dolphins players.
We’re talking about someone selected six spots ahead of the recently released Cam Smith, whom the Dolphins drafted 51st overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
He’s a 6-foot-3, 198 cornerback who can run.
Brents started eight games as a rookie, contributing 43 tackles, one interception, forcing one fumble and deflecting six passes for the Indianapolis Colts. But he ended that season nursing hamstring and quadriceps injuries.
His second season he started one of the two games he played in before sustaining a season-ending knee injury, which he rehabbed the rest of 2024.
Then came 2024, a season where the Colts added a new defensive coordinator, Lou Anarumo, who Brents didn’t impress.
Based on what the world saw Sunday, this has to be a case of sports politics?
That’s when a talent gets buried on the depth chart for one reason or another.
Maybe the team has paid a veteran a ton of money and wanted to justify it. Or there’s a draftee who needs more opportunities. Sometimes they’re a victim to a bigger name, a stronger relationship with the coach, or more powerful agent.
These things happen, but once a team discovers what they have it would be shameful not to continue investing in it.
In fairness, the Bills don’t exactly have the best stable of receivers. But there wasn’t a situation Sunday when Brents needed to show up for his team that he didn’t.
“He played at a high level,” safety Minkah Fitzpatrick said. “He was competitive every single throw that went his way. He did a great job communicating and relaying information.”
Brents got waived in September and Miami claimed him. He has spent the past two months learning the intricacies of Miami’s defense and helping the Dolphins starting receivers get ready for each week’s opponent.
On Sunday, the hard work he put in finally showed.
“It was tough, especially last year, not being able to play at all. I came in as a high-round draft pick. There were a lot of expectations, and then things happened that I couldn’t control,” Brents said. “I give all the glory to God. I’ve been praying every day and making sure I stay ready for when that time does come.”
“It has been a tough journey, but I know that one day that storm is going to end.”
This story was originally published November 9, 2025 at 6:35 PM.
