Steelers Second-Year CB Shares Massive 2025 Goals

Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Beanie Bishop Jr. exceeded expectations as an undrafted free agent rookie last season, and he's ready to make another leap heading into year two.

Appearing on his teammate Christian Kuntz's self-titled podcast, Bishop laid out his personal goals for the 2025 campaign as well as what he wants the team to accomplish.

"People see stats, but I wanna have a bigger impact on the game," Bishop said. "Obviously I want to, as far as the team goes, I want to win the North, get a home-field playoff game first of all, and be able to win here. And make the Pro Bowl."

A former All-American at West Virginia, Bishop beat out Thomas Graham Jr. for the starting slot corner job in the preseason.

He played 320 snaps through the Steelers' Week 9 bye per Pro Football Focus, seeing his usage increase game after game during that stretch while logging a combined three interceptions against the New York Jets and New York Giants in Weeks 7 and 8, respectively, two of which came off Aaron Rodgers.

Once Cam Sutton returned from suspension for a violation of the personal conduct policy, however, Bishop slowly lost his hold on a consistent role. From Week 15 through Pittsburgh's Wild Card round defeat at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens, he saw the field for just 42 reps.

He finished the year with 45 tackles, seven passes defended and four interceptions while making six starts, and Pro Football Reference charted him as giving up 36 receptions for 388 yards in coverage.

At the annual league meetings earlier this offseason, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters that he believes Bishop is capable of reaching another level during his sophomore campaign.

“I thought he made some plays, particularly as you look at cut-ups," Tomlin said. "It was a good start for him, particularly being an undrafted guy the way that he was. It’s reasonable to expect him to continue to grow and take off and be able to do some more things. Excited about the upside of him, but certainly he’s going to be faced with some competitive challenges in terms of re-earning that role in 2025, but that’s just the nature of this thing."

While he has some competition for the starting nickelback job in free agent signee Brandin Echols and perhaps even seventh-round pick Donte Kent, Bishop remains the favorite and could solidify that status this summer.