HEADLINES

Julius Brents

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/19/25

November 19th, 2025 at 6:45pm CST by Ely Allen

Wednesday’s minor moves:

Houston Texans

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

  • Designated for return from reserve/PUP: RB Eric Gray

Pittsburgh Steelers

21 days have gone by since the Steelers opened Trice’s practice window. They’ve made the decision not to activate him from injured reserve, so he will remain on IR without the possibility of being activated.

Gray has been on New York’s physically unable to perform list since they set their initial 53-man roster. With rookie running back Cam Skattebo hitting IR earlier in the season, Gray’s return could add some needed depth at the position.

Dolphins CB JuJu Brents To Undergo Season-Ending Foot Surgery

November 17th, 2025 at 12:48pm CST by Adam La Rose

JuJu Brents did not survive roster cuts with the Colts this summer, but he managed to find a role with the Dolphins in 2025. The third-year corner’s season is set to come to an end, however.

Brents is set to undergo foot surgery which will sideline him for the remainder of the campaign, Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL Network report. The report adds he will be be recovered in full by the start of next season. In the meantime, Miami will be left without yet another corner during the closing stages of the season.

Dating back to the summer, the Dolphins have been hit by a slew of major injuries at that position. The team’s need for depth in the secondary led to Brents being claimed off waivers in August. That move allowed the 25-year-old to carve out a rotational role with his new team. Brents made seven appearances and two starts as a Dolphin prior to suffering the injury, totaling 14 tackles.

One year remains on Brents’ rookie contract, so the Dolphins could elect to keep him in the fold through the coming offseason. Doing so would allow him to compete for a place on what could be a much different looking CB depth chart than what the team currently has. Of course, a decision on that front will be made not by Chris Grier but rather by interim general manager Champ Kelly or his full-time replacement.

Miami has won two straight games to move to 4-7 on the year. The team ranks 13th in the NFL against the pass despite being shorthanded in the secondary all season. Maintaining that level of performance will be more difficult moving forward with Brents no longer in the picture.

Dolphins Claim CB JuJu Brents, To Re-Sign RB Jeff Wilson

August 27th, 2025 at 12:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Colts cut ties with JuJu Brents on Tuesday, but the young cornerback will remain tied to his second-round contract. The Dolphins claimed Brents, veteran reporter Jordan Schultz tweets.

In addition to claiming Brents, the Dolphins are reuniting with Jeff Wilson on a practice squad deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. The veteran Mike McDaniel charge did not make the 49ers’ 53-man roster, but the Dolphins have dangled an opportunity. Wilson played in Miami from 2022-24 but saw his role diminish as the tenure wore on. With Miami banged up at running back presently, Wilson will return.

Eyed as a starter in Indianapolis’ Gus Bradley scheme, Brents had been unable to stay healthy. The Indianapolis native missed eight games as a rookie and 15 last season. Brents, 25, suffered a knee injury in Week 1 last year and became the rare player to only play in his team’s first and last games in a season. In Colts camp this year, however, Brents missed extensive time with a hamstring injury. Despite Indianapolis losing third-round rookie Justin Walley, the team did not hold onto Brents as it transitions to Lou Anarumo‘s system.

The Colts cut the former No. 44 overall pick days after signing Xavien Howard, one of the longest-tenured DBs in Dolphins history. Miami had a veteran group in place post-Howard in 2024, but circumstances changed radically this year. The Dolphins released Kendall Fuller and traded Jalen Ramsey. They later saw Artie Burns and Kader Kohou suffer ACL tears.

The Dolphins also placed former second-round pick Cam Smith on the reserve/NFI list, sidelining the disappointing draftee for at least four games. They released Mike Hilton on Tuesday, leading to a Colts visit (as these teams’ CB paths remain intertwined), and signed Rasul Douglas. The team also retained Jack Jones, a late-summer addition. In addition to the Smith move, Miami waived DB Isaiah Johnson.

Acquired via trade at the 2022 deadline, Wilson has played for McDaniel for most of his career. The former 49ers assistant traded for Wilson in his first year as Dolphins HC, and Miami re-signed the Raheem Mostert sidekick in 2023. The Dolphins drafting De’Von Achane and Jaylen Wright, however, changed Wilson’s standing. Wilson totaled just 57 rushing yards on 16 carries last season — after accumulating just 188 in 2023. The 29-year-old RB does have scheme knowledge here and stands to help while Achane and Wright are battling injuries; the latter is not expected to play in Week 1.

Colts Place LB Jaylon Carlies On IR, Set 53-Man Roster

August 26th, 2025 at 7:28pm CST by Ben Levine

The Colts have cut down their roster to 53 players. The team announced the following moves:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

  • K Maddux Trujillo

Placed on IR (designated for return):

Jaylon Carlies will be forced to miss at least the first four games of the upcoming season, but it sounds like it should be a minimum stay on IR for the linebacker. According to Joel A. Erickson of the Indy Star, Carlies should only require a short stint on injured reserve as he recovers from an ankle injury. The 2024 fifth-round pick started six of his 10 appearances for the Colts last season, collecting 36 tackles and one sack.

While he’s not the biggest name from the list of cuts, linebacker Austin Ajiake was waived in a bit of a surprising move. As Erickson notes, the former UDFA spent significant time with the second-team unit during the preseason, and he even got some reps with the first team. A UNLV product, Ajiake has also had stints with the Broncos, Raiders, and Packers. He spent the entire 2024 campaign on Indy’s taxi squad.

49ers Did Not Offer Charvarius Ward Extension; Latest On Colts’ CB Corps

August 1st, 2025 at 5:32pm CST by Sam Robinson

Charvarius Ward landed on his feet in free agency, joining a few third-contract-seeking cornerbacks in collecting a nice payday on Day 1 of the legal tampering period. That market settled in between $16-$18MM per year, and Ward landed a deal on the high end of that range by signing with the Colts.

The All-Pro corner’s three-year, $54MM deal matched the pacts given to Carlton Davis and Byron Murphy, and it came after a down year for Ward in San Francisco. Ward mourned the loss of his 1-year-old daughter, who died in October. Ward missed three games, but he admitted his 49ers tenure was going south independent of his personal tragedy.

“Even before everything happened with my baby, I really wasn’t super motivated,” Ward said, via The Athletic’s Michael Silver. “Because after the year I had in ‘23, I wanted a contract extension — because I wanted to stay — and I knew I wasn’t getting a contract offer. They came to me and kind of told me what it was, ’cause they had (other) people to pay. So it kind of had me in my feelings a little bit. I just never made it public.

“I was hurt when I realized I wasn’t getting a contract extension or even an offer for an extension. So, I wasn’t motivated; like, from OTAs all the way through camp, I was kind of pissed off. I knew when the season started it was a wrap for me in the Bay.”

Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers were interested in paying Ward, but their actions revealed he was almost definitely set to be a one-contract 49er. San Francisco paid their other starting corner, Deommodore Lenoir, weeks after the death of Ward’s daughter. Lenoir, more than three years younger than the 29-year-old Ward, became the corner the 49ers built their 2025 roster around. Ward joins Kenny Moore in a suddenly pricey Colts CB corps. The 49ers also let the likes of Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga and Aaron Banks walk; they have since paid Brock Purdy, George Kittle and Fred Warner as well.

PFR’s No. 23 free agent, Ward will be expected to reprise his 2023 form in Indianapolis. He earned second-team All-Pro acclaim for that season, which produced a 49ers NFC championship. In 2024, however, Ward yielded 61.5% accuracy as the closest defender. This corresponded with a rise in passer rating allowed (116.6 – up from 2023’s 64.5 number). Pro Football Focus had rated Ward as a top-six corner in both 2022 and ’23, but it dropped him to 93rd. Despite moving close to 30, Ward commanded a big market — one that included interest from the Saints and Chiefs.

Ward and Moore will anchor Indy’s CB cadre, but the team has seen rookie Justin Walley push for a starting role. Walley drew praise during the Colts’ offseason program, but other competitors for the team’s boundary job opposite Ward (Jaylon Jones, Julius Brents) were down with injuries. Hamstring issues have limited both in training camp as well. Walley has since continued his ascent to the point he appears the favorite to be the team’s third CB starter, The Athletic’s James Boyd notes. The Colts have given the third-round pick first-team work alongside Moore and Ward, according to the Indianapolis Star’s Joel Erickson.

Although Walley worked with the starters during the first week of Colts camp, Erickson notes the competition is not over. Jones made 27 starts from 2023-24, helping the team cover for Brents’ injury trouble. Brents is a former second-round pick who arrived just before the Isaiah Rodgers gambling scandal emerged, but the Indianapolis native has played only 11 games in two seasons.

Walley was rumored to be a Moore heir apparent in the slot. At 5-foot-11, the Minnesota alum has filled in for the veteran staple there during camp as well. Moore is not in any danger of being displaced this year, but the Colts look ready to give Walley a big role in the not-too-distant future. That may start on the perimeter this season.

Colts Activate CB JuJu Brents From IR

January 4th, 2025 at 11:45am CST by Ben Levine

JuJu Brents‘ sophomore season has been all but lost, but the cornerback will at least have a chance to play again before the 2024 campaign concludes. According to Mike Chappell of FOX59/CBS4 Sports in Indy, the Colts have activated the cornerback from injured reserve. To make room on the roster, the team has waived cornerback Chris Lammons.

A former second-round pick, Brents was penciled in as the Colts’ CB1 heading into his second season in the league. However, a knee injury knocked him out of the team’s season opener and subsequently landed him on injured reserve. While Brents was initially expected to miss the rest of the regular season, he managed to return to practice last month and should now be in the lineup for the season finale.

The defensive back showed flashes as a rookie, collecting 43 tackles, six passes defended, and one interception in nine games (eight starts). However, he missed eight games due to injury in 2023, and he later underwent cleanup ankle surgery this offseason. Brents even suffered a broken nose during the preseason, so the player will surely be tagged as an injury risk heading into 2025.

Chris Ballard drew some criticism this past offseason for defiantly sticking to his homegrown roster-building strategy, including a lack of effort to improve the team’s cornerback corps. While the team re-signed stalwart slot CB Kenny Moore, the Colts otherwise relied on in-house options heading into the 2024 campaign. Former seventh-round pick Jaylon Jones has stepped in as a reliable starter for Indy, but the team has otherwise seen a revolving door at the position, with Samuel Womack, Dallis Flowers, David Long, and Lammons all getting looks.

Lammons’ extended look came when Moore was out of the lineup, with the fill-in garnering 85 snaps between Week 4 and Week 5. A former special teamer in Kansas City, the veteran could now look for a similar role with a contender.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/18/24

December 18th, 2024 at 7:32pm CST by Ely Allen

Wednesday’s minor NFL moves across the league:

Arizona Cardinals

Cleveland Browns

Indianapolis Colts

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Mills, the former Eagles’ and Patriots’ starter had taken on a bigger role in New York as usual starter Tony Adams took fewer snaps due to a hamstring injury. He’ll miss the remainder of the season due to a broken collar bone.

Forsythe had taken over as the starting right tackle following an injury to George Fant in the season opener before ending up on injured reserve himself with a hand injury.

Watts’ 21-day practice window has come and gone without an activation. As a result, he’ll revert back to IR without the ability to be activated.

Colts To Place CB JuJu Brents On IR

September 10th, 2024 at 3:57pm CST by Sam Robinson

3:57pm: In moving Brents to IR, the Colts are signing Lammons to their 53-man roster, Fox59’s Mike Chappell tweets. A former Chiefs backup, the 28-year-old corner played in four games as a Colts reserve last season.

3:03pm: The Colts received scrutiny for inaction at cornerback this offseason. While the team re-signed stalwart slot CB Kenny Moore during an offseason featuring a retention-heavy strategy, no notable moves covered its outside spots. It is possible that will change soon thanks to an injury development.

A knee injury will lead JuJu Brents to IR, and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports the second-year cover man is expected to miss the rest of the season. The Colts took Brents in last year’s second round. Brents’ injury invites questions for the Colts, who had penciled him in as a starter while holding a competition for their CB2 role.

Brents played 62 snaps against the Texans, and while this injury represents his most significant NFL setback, the Kansas State alum has dealt with other maladies already in his young career. Brents missed eight games due to injury last season and suffered a broken nose during preseason play. He underwent cleanup ankle surgery this offseason.

As Brents was on track to start during the offseason program, the Colts pitted 2023 seventh-rounder Jaylon Jones and UDFA Dallis Flowers against each other for the other perimeter job. Jones won and started in Week 1. The Colts also claimed Samuel Womack off waivers from the 49ers. This led to the team cutting Darrell Baker, who started six games with Indianapolis last season. Baker landed with the Titans.

Flowers, who started all four games he played before suffering a season-ending Achilles tear last year, was a healthy scratch in Week 1. Womack played but did not see any time on defense. Chris Lammons saw 22 defensive snaps, giving the Colts another option. Though, it would not surprise to see a Colts team that struggled against the pass last season seek outside help.

Chris Ballard defiantly stuck to his homegrown roster-building strategy recently, but it was surprising to see the Colts not address the corner position in the draft. Brents represented the lead outside CB for Indianapolis, which waived Isaiah Rodgers following his gambling suspension last year. The Colts showed some flexibility here in 2023, signing Stephon Gilmore. The former Defensive Player of the Year signed with the Vikings recently, but Patrick Peterson and Xavien Howard remain available. Hit with a civil lawsuit this offseason, Howard was not believed to be on Indy’s radar previously.

Pro Football Focus graded Brents 66th among corners last season; the Colts drafted the Indianapolis native 44th overall. While Moore will man the slot, the Colts carry just four healthy corners (Jones, Womack, Flowers) on their active roster. Lammons played as a practice squad elevation in Week 1. Brents’ rookie contract runs through 2026.

Titans Claim CB Darrell Baker Jr.

August 29th, 2024 at 7:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

As they transitioned from Stephon Gilmore‘s one-and-done, they trotted out an unproven cornerback group save for slot ace Kenny Moore. One of the players Indianapolis used as a starter to open the season is now on Tennessee’s roster.

After the Colts waived Darrell Baker Jr. on Wednesday, the Titans submitted a successful claim, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. Two years remain on Baker’s rookie contract.

Baker initially made Indianapolis’ 53-man roster, but the team subsequently claimed Samuel Womack off waivers from the 49ers. Rather than passing through waivers to a potential Indy practice squad slot, Baker will head to another AFC South team’s 53-man roster.

The Colts opened last season with Baker as a starting corner and gave him five more starts on the outside as the season progressed. Baker was not viewed as a starter coming into camp, and the Indianapolis Star’s Joel Erickson adds 2023 seventh-round pick Jaylon Jones won the job opposite Julius Brents. Baker had been working opposite Dallis Flowers with the Colts’ second-stringers. Baker played 467 defensive snaps last season — after none his rookie year — and Pro Football Focus ranked the former UDFA outside the top 100 at the position.

Tennessee moved on from three-year contributor Elijah Molden via trade and cut bait on Caleb Farley‘s first-round contract. As Dennard Wilson takes over on defense in Nashville, the team added two big-ticket pieces in free agent Chidobe Awuzie and trade pickup L’Jarius Sneed. With Roger McCreary expected to patrol the slot, the Titans look to have Baker en route as a second-string option. The team also rosters fifth-round rookie Jarvis Brownlee at the position.

The Titans also signed Nick Vannett from their practice squad and placed fourth-round rookie linebacker Cedric Gray on IR, Wilson adds,

AFC South Notes: Henry, Titans, OL, Jaguars, Peters, Colts, DBs, Smith, Texans

July 26th, 2024 at 5:43pm CST by Sam Robinson

As could be expected, Ran Carthon pushed back on the rumor he was overruled on trading Derrick Henry before last year’s deadline. A recent report said the Titans GM had a deal in place to send Henry elsewhere for a fourth-round pick — one with the potential to become a third — only to be denied. It is worth noting Carthon did not have full autonomy in his first year, with Mike Vrabel still in the mix, but does now. The second-year GM did say (via veteran Titans reporter Paul Kuharsky) multiple teams made offers for the two-time rushing champion last year. Carthon said no agreement was ultimately finalized on a trade. The Ravens were closely connected to the perennial 1,000-yard rusher, and the Titans ultimately agreed to move on this offseason — after a memorable Henry on-field farewell address — leading Henry to Baltimore.

Here is the latest from the AFC South:

  • Amid a widespread effort to retain their own talent this offseason, the Colts did not make a notable addition at cornerback. They have low-end investments — seventh-rounder Jaylon Jones, UDFA Dallis Flowers — as the primary contenders to start opposite JuJu Brents, while Kenny Moore mans the slot. The Colts are also preparing for 2022 third-rounder Nick Cross to become a full-time starter at safety alongside Julian Blackmon. GM Chris Ballard said (via The Athletic’s James Boyd) the team could “definitely” make a move to add a veteran DB, but that is not the plan right now. Indianapolis will continue to assess its in-house options before diving into the free agent or trade markets here.
  • Both Brents and right tackle Braden Smith underwent offseason surgery, per Boyd and Fox59’s Mike Chappell. Smith, who is entering his seventh season as Indy’s right tackle, underwent knee surgery this offseason. Brents, a 2023 second-rounder, had cleanup ankle surgery. The Kansas State product missed eight games last season, returning for the Colts’ final four contests after missing the previous six. Smith missed seven games last year. Neither player landed on Indy’s active/PUP list this week.
  • On the subject of offseason procedures, Titans RT hopeful Nicholas Petit-Frere underwent cleanup knee surgery, per ESPN.com’s Turron Davenport. Petit-Frere, who saw a shoulder malady end his 2023 season shortly after he was reinstated from a gambling suspension, remains on Tennessee’s active/PUP list following the knee procedure. The Titans’ primary RT starter in 2022, Petit-Frere is attempting to reclaim his job under new O-line coach Bill Callahan. The former third-rounder may well be favored to do so.
  • Adding Stefon Diggs gives the Texans receiving depth to the point multiple trade candidates may emerge. Still, the team sought some additional help by working out former Eagles contributor Greg Ward, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson notes. A former Houston Cougars QB, Ward has not played in a regular-season game since 2021 and spent part of last season on Philly’s practice squad.
  • The Jaguars made some notable hires recently, adding longtime Cardinals exec Josh Scobey and recently retired DT Corey Peters to their front office. Both will join the organization as college scouts. Not to be confused with ex-Jacksonville kicker Josh Scobee, Scobey — an ex-NFL running back — spent the past 12 seasons as a Cardinals scout before an offseason separation. He finished his tenure as the team’s director of college scouting. After interviewing with the Titans, Scobey is with the Jags. Peters finished his career with the Jaguars in 2022, joining the team during GM Trent Baalke‘s first season in charge. Peters was with the Cardinals during much of Scobey’s Arizona stay. The Jags also added Mimi Bolden-Morris and Austin Leake as scouting assistants and announced Antonio Robinson‘s elevation to a college scouting post.
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