WESTFIELD, Ind. – One thing JuJu Brents never lacks is confidence.

The rangy 6-foot-3 cornerback carries himself with a certain edge, one befitting of an NFL cornerback. There is no doubt in his mind that when he's on the field, he'll make plays.

Through the first week of training camp, Brents has done just that – he has an interception and had a hand in another, tipping a pass to safety Rodney Thomas II for a pick. He has a handful of pass break-ups, too.

For a guy who's missed 23 games due to injury in his first two years in the NFL, what Brents has done early in training camp has been notable. But it's the sort of play the Colts expect from the 2023 second-round pick – and the sort of play Brents knows he can bring to his hometown team's defense.

"Staying healthy is his biggest thing, but he's been good so far," head coach Shane Steichen said. "Obviously, learning a new defense, taking that in stride. So, he's made some good plays out there and we need to continue that."

Brents missed most of the 2024 season with a knee injury he sustained in Week 1 – a game he finished despite tearing his meniscus and MCL in it. He got kicked in the face in a preseason game last year and missed time; as a rookie, he missed eight games with various injuries as well.

Brents understands some of those injuries are the product of the sort of bad luck that can come with playing an ultra-physical contact sport like football. But he also spent this offseason focusing on ways to avoid soft tissue injuries, like pulled quads or hamstrings, which he feels are preventable.

"That's stuff you can take care of on your own," Brents said on last week's episode of The Colts Show Podcast. "But the little things, like where you may end up hurting your knee, stuff like that – man, sometimes things happen. I think for me, I've been to those deep waters now. I've seen what adversity looks like, and I know how to deal with it."

Those injuries, in a way, have only bolstered Brents' confidence. If he can work his way back from everything he already has, he can flush a practice rep he might not have won and move on to the next – an essential "next play" mentality to playing cornerback.

And Brents, again, has made plenty of splashy plays in the nascent stages of Colts camp.

"It's cool having JuJu back on the field," cornerback Kenny Moore II said. "Such a great guy, such a great pro. He's a pro's pro, and I like the way he approaches the game. One of my coaches told me early on in my career, love the game so it loves you back. And that's a guy that always approaches the game, and me being a veteran in the room, I can't wait to see the ceiling that he reaches in league, I can't wait to see the ceiling that he reaches being an Indianapolis Colt."

Whatever playing time Brents gets in 2025, though, will be earned through stiff competition.

Brents is competing with Jaylon Jones, who started 27 games in 2023 and 2024, and Justin Walley, a 2025 third-round pick, for places on the Colts' cornerback depth chart behind Moore and free agent signing Charvarius Ward. Samuel Womack III, who started eight games and had two interceptions for the Colts in 2024, is part of the competition as well.

Brents, Jones and Walley have been all over the Colts' secondary making plays in practice. For all three, continuing to stack good practices with solid performances in joint practices and preseason games will be critical in determining how gameday snaps.

"As a competitor, you relish that type of competition," Brents said. "For me, it's just a challenge every single day, but it makes us all better. It's good competition. Essentially, we look at it like we're all helping each other, competing every single day. I love the competition. It's gonna be good for us."

For now, Brents will continue battling through training camp, showing he can not only stay healthy but make plays when he's on the field. His confidence remains high, and however things shake out, having a healthy and productive Brents will be a good thing for the Colts in 2025.

"We all just want to see each other win," Brents said. "At the end of the day, he wins, I win – the team wins."