For any NFL rookie, the long grind of a 17-game regular season is daunting. That is especially the case for rookies who spend all offseason preparing for the draft and then getting acclimated with their team through rookie minicamps and other activities. It’s the longest year of their lives — there’s a reason that players can hit the rookie wall toward the end of their first season. Now that he’s on the other side of his rookie season, Beanie Bishop Jr. has a particular focus for his offseason, and it relates to the job he expects to have with the Pittsburgh Steelers next season.
“I would say just trying to get my communication together bro,” Bishop said via The Christian Kuntz Podcast. “I understand just talking to the coaches, they explained to me basically how Year 2 is gonna be. Obviously taking over the full-time role at nickel, that communication is going to go through me.”
Every player has an exit interview with the coaches once the season is over, and it sounds like they told Bishop that he will be the full-time nickel corner next year. He had held that role down for the first half of the 2024 season, but his role diminished a bit after Cam Sutton returned from suspension. It doesn’t seem like the Steelers will be looking to sign a starting nickel corner in free agency. They could potentially draft one, but that rookie would be unlikely to take on a full-time role over Bishop initially.
The communication aspect of the nickel role is underrated. There is a lot going on in sub-packages when there are three or four receivers on the field. The Steelers had issues with pre-snap motion and communication breakdowns in those scenarios last year. The Steelers have had a rotating door at nickel corner for several years now, so it’s probably no surprise they have also had communication issues in the secondary for the last several years.
“You don’t need the corners trying to communicate a whole lot. The communication line is obviously the linebackers, the safeties, the nickel,” Bishop said. “Being able to explain the motion rules and all of those adjustments to like, okay, we know Joey’s a press guy, if they get a stack, have Joey press and I can play off. I like playing off. I like playing off man anyways.”
Now that Bishop has his feet underneath him as a professional, he can focus on the finer details that come with playing slot corner in the NFL, and it sounds like communication will be key to him being entrusted with a full-time role in the long run.
Beyond the mental part of his game, Bishop is focused on getting his offseason routine down to a science. The offseason before players’ rookie year is filled with all-star games, pre-draft meetings, pro days, and training specifically for the various workouts. For the first time, Bishop has time on his hands and he’s making sure he’s productive with it.
“Obviously get my process together of watching film, taking care of my body,” Bishop said. “I kind of wanted to be like okay, Monday, I got this. Tuesday, I got this. Wednesday, I have this.”
Bishop will have a new position coach this year after Grady Brown’s contract was allowed to expire. The Steelers brought back Gerald Alexander, who was with the team in 2022 and 2023. Typically, a new coach might come with some uncomfortable adjustments, but Bishop has a baseline established with Alexander from his experience at the East-West Shrine Bowl last offseason. Alexander was an assistant coach at the Shrine Bowl last season.
