Physicality comes in all shapes and sizes, including shapes and sizes as small as Pittsburgh Steelers rookie Beanie Bishop Jr. The college free-agent defensive back stands at just 5-9, 182 pounds, but he can pack a a punch. He falls in line with the team’s recent lineage of slot defenders, beginning with William Gay. As long as he didn’t have to tackle Adrian Peterson in open space, Gay brought physicality to the slot.
“I am a physical guy. I love to impose my will on guys,” Bishop said recently via Teresa Varley for the team’s website. He added, “I just want to show my ability to play and that I am different from everybody else. I want to show that I can contribute to helping the team win ball games this year.”
Signed after the draft as a college free agent, Bishop believes he has a real shot with the Steelers. At least they give him the best opportunity to make a 53-man roster, he said. And given their lack of quality available slot defender options, he may even have a shot to play.
The Steelers obviously like him. They brought him in for a pre-draft visit, and general manager Omar Khan gushed when Bishop came up. He even went so far as to say Bishop will have “a great opportunity to help us this year, at nickel corner,” adding as an afterthought his potential special teams contributions as well.
Mike Hilton succeeded Gay as the Steelers’ primary slot defender, and though even smaller, he took the physicality of the position to another level. Indeed, he defined it to the point that Mike Tomlin wanted to recreate Hilton in Arthur Maulet. Chandon Sullivan was somewhat of a departure from that physicality, perhaps one reason he’s not re-signed.
“I am physical. I have that mentality,” Beanie Bishop said in describing his own game. “That is how I am different. A lot of defensive backs want to be cover guys. I am a guy who likes to be physical and get in on tackles, even if it’s not my play to make. I like the physical aspect of it.”
Bishop recorded 67 tackles during his one season at West Virginia in 2023. He also added four interceptions to his stat line and 20 passes defensed. Arguably, he has better cover skills than any of his predecessors since Gay.
At least in theory, Bishop may represent the best combination of physicality and coverage of the Steelers’ recent slot options. But there’s a reason he didn’t hear his name called during the draft. Perhaps if the Steelers actually had a seventh-round pick in 2024, they would have used it on Bishop.
Regardless of how it worked out, both sides seem pleased that they wound up together. Bishop has a very serious opportunity to make the team and perhaps more. As a four-phase-capable special teams player, he already has a leg up—and at his height, he can use one.
