As Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins hauled in a deep pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud early in the second quarter of the Colts' season opener, safety Nick Cross and cornerback JuJu Brents tumbled to the ground with Collins, fighting for the ball.

Collins made the catch, but not without Brents trying to wrestle the ball out of his hands. Brents, the 2023 second-round pick, felt a little something in his knee as he got up, but didn't think much of it. He finished the game.

The next day, Brents went in to get a scan on his knee "just to be sure" nothing was seriously wrong. He didn't think anything was going to pop up on the scan.

Instead, "it was a little different than we thought," Brents said, "which was heartbreaking."

The scan revealed injuries to Brents' meniscus and PCL. He was placed on injured reserve a day later, though he was told back in September there would be a chance he could return late in the season.

On Wednesday, over three months after placing Brents on injured reserve, the Colts opened the cornerback's 21-day practice window. Brents, who remains on injured reserve, participated in practice Wednesday, and he can be activated off injured reserve any time in the next three weeks.

For Brents, even just having the opportunity to practice and give himself a chance to play again this year is welcome news after a long, grueling rehab process.

"I had a lot of big goals I set for myself coming into Year 2, then just had to pivot a little bit with the injury," Brents said. "It's tough but I'm built for it. Just being resilient — like last year dealing with some adversity, then dealing with some more this year and just having the opportunity to grow through it. Just looking at it that way."

Brents had high expectations for himself heading into his second year with his hometown team. As a rookie, Brents dealt with injuries that limited him to nine games – he also exited the Colts' season-ending loss to the Texans with a hamstring injury – but when he did play, he showed plenty of flashes. Brents in 2023 had an interception, a forced fumble and five pass break-ups, all while showing plenty of upside in his ability to play tight man-to-man coverage against experienced, top-end receivers.

Another one of Brents' goals for 2024 was to make a positive impact in the community he's called home his entire life. During training camp, he and his family began planning a December gala to support the JuJu Brents & Folks Foundation, which aims to create generational change by supporting single parents. When he got hurt in September, though, his mom reached out about the gala – and initially, Brents was unsure he wanted to follow through with it, since he'd likely still be on injured reserve when it happened.

Brents, though, realized he could make just as significant an impact – if not even more significant – by still holding his gala despite being injured. The gala was held on Dec. 10 in Fishers.

"Even when you are facing adversity, going through that process, you can still help other people while you're going through your own story," Brents said. "It was important for me to just show people that I can be vulnerable, continue to give back to my community in a positive way while dealing with my adversity."

Brents has had to deal with plenty of injury-related adversity since being drafted by the Colts in 2023. He's not bitter that he's had to deal with so much time in the training room instead of on the football field, though, and that positive mindset helped him get back to practice on Wednesday.

"Just keep your faith," Brents said. "I signed up for it, it's football. If I was playing tennis, I'd be like, alright, what's going on."

Wednesday's practice report: