During his 11-year NFL career, Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson saw some great cornerback play time and time again.
He knows what it’s supposed to look like, and following the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 37-15 win over the New York Jets on Sunday Night Football, the former Bengals receiver spoke highly of Steelers rookie cornerback Beanie Bishop Jr.
Bishop, of course, was the story of the game for the Steelers outside of Russell Wilson. He picking off Jets QB Aaron Rodgers twice, one of which was an absurd, one-handed interception over the middle late in the first half that changed the game.
Appearing on “Nightcap” Sunday night into early Monday morning, Johnson praised Bishop and compared him to another young slot corner in the NFL who is dominating.
“Hey, that young fella there, that young fella there is nice, bro. Yeah, he nice,” Johnson said of Bishop, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “He’s so nice. And I hate to do the comparison, but for some reason he remind me of goddamn Brian Branch tonight. He was all over the field. He was everywhere making play after play. And this is not the first time I seen him stand out on film or stand out on TV.
“Hey, Beanie Bishop. Boy, if you see this boy, you the real deal, boy. You the real one.”
For one night, at least, Bishop was the real deal for the Steelers.
The rookie undrafted free agent out of West Virginia, who has had a tough season to date as teams target him in the passing game, finished with six tackles, one tackle for loss and two interceptions of Rodgers. Not many people pick off Rodgers once in a game, let alone twice.
Bishop now has that on his resume. Hopefully he gets the footballs signed soon, too.
Each pick at a huge time, too. Bishop’s first interception came late in the first half with the Jets trying to drive for more points while holding a 15-6 lead. Bishop made a play in a big spot, stepping in front of a Rodgers throw over the middle intended for Garrett Wilson and made a remarkable catch.
That interception set up a Russell Wilson touchdown pass to George Pickens, which completely flipped the game.
Then in the second half, Rodgers seemingly hit Garrett Wilson up the sideline for a big play, but the ball bounced off of Wilson’s chest into the air. Bishop was there to make the play, returning the interception to the 1-yard line, setting up a Russell Wilson 1-yard touchdown run, kick-starting the rout.
Coming into the game, Bishop was having issues in coverage, as well as with communication, tackling and avoiding penalties. But the Steelers kept the faith and were rewarded as the talented UDFA came through in a big way, helping them get to 5-2 on the season.
It could be the start of something special for Bishop. If it is, look out.
