Why JuJu Brents Could Be a Big Factor for Dolphins Secondary

JuJu Brents is a player who flashes and shows the potential to be a quality starting cornerback.

In his first start of the 2025 season for the Miami Dolphins, Brents had a standout game against the Buffalo Bills, recovering a fumble and allowing only two receptions for 12 yards.

It was intriguing to see if Brents would begin to find his footing in Miami. Seeing a corner listed at 6-3 move the way he can with very long arms, the physical traits are definitely not a question. He's athletic.

"He can play the ball," new Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley said before a minicamp practice Wednedsay. "When you go back and you watch his tape when he was healthy, he was doing a really nice job."

The problem is that Brents unfortunately finds himself hurt and is unable to ever find himself playing a full season.

Brents, who the Dolphins claimed off waivers from the Indianapolis Colts last August after they gave up on him because of his injury issues, has never played more thna nine games in a season since entering the NFL as a second-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft.

Overall, quarterbacks had a 67.0 passer rating when targeting Brents last season, according to Pro Football Focus. Yes, the sample size is not large, but it's not as if quarterbacks were hunting to target Brents whenever he was on the field. Keep in mind, this is a defense that allowed the highest completion percentage at a jarring 72%.

Coming into this season, Brents has an opportunity he must take full advantage of, especially in a contract year, to show he can be relied on to be a key contributor in the secondary.

Brents is hungry to prove his worth

It's easy for players to always have that fear in the back of their heads of getting injured again, especially if it's a constant theme. Brents is approaching with a positive mindset and has full faith in the work he's putting in.

"Make sure I'm in shape, make sure I'm available again, and just having the right mentality, come out here and compete." Brents said in a media session following practice Wednesday.

Alluding to being in a contract year earlier, Brents understands the situation but has his focus set on the team. "To be honest, I really haven't thought about it," he said. "For me, it's just being available for my team. I mean, I've had a lot of adversity, but just looking at it as an opportunity to be able to grow through that adversity."

This is a secondary group filled with players who need to make the most of their opportunities when on the field. New GM Jon-Eric Sullivan made it a point to have positional competition to bring the best out of everyone.

When evaluating each room, the secondary is the epitome of players competing for a spot. A majority of these players are on one-year deals, and Brents is now in that boat of entering free agency next season.

With the Dolphins adding a promising first-round talent in Chris Johnson and Jason Marshall Jr. entering his second season, Brents is optimistic about what this secondary is capable of doing, even without having any household names.

"A lot of people probably going to look over us, we ain't got like no very established guys yet, but I promise you, I guarantee you, we got some dogs," he said. "100% we got some dogs in that back end, and I think for us the sky's the limit."

Under new leadership, it's time for Brents to put it all together and prove he can be a key player that the Dolphins want to keep in their long-term plans.

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