Richard Allen Bishop (March 23, 1950 – September 26, 2016) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) and

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Marshalltown Community College Marshalltown Community College (MCC) is a public community college in Marshalltown, Iowa. It is part of the Iowa Valley Community College District. The campus is located just to the south of Marshalltown along Highway 30. A second campus, Iowa ...

Marshalltown, Iowa Marshalltown is a city in Marshall County, Iowa, and is the county seat of the county. With a population of 27,591 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the 16th largest city in the state. Marshalltown is home to the Iowa Vetera ...

, where he was a First-team

NJCAA The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, State college (disambiguation), state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 sepa ...

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

as a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. Following his career at Marshalltown, Bishop played at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

for the

Louisville Cardinals The Louisville Cardinals (also known as the Cards) are the NCAA athletic teams representing the University of Louisville. The Cardinals teams play in the Atlantic Coast Conference, beginning in the 2014 season. While playing in the Big East Co ...

. He died in Miami, Florida, in 2016.Former Patriots DT Richard Bishop passes away
/ref> Bishop recorded 30.5 sacks, recovered 6

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

s and blocked a

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, ...

attempt while playing on the defensive line for the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

over the 1976–1981 seasons in the NFL. He was a member of the New England Patriots 1980s All-Decade Team. He shared in a sack of Ken Stabler and Dan Manucci, recorded 1 sack of Mike Rae, Ron Jaworski, Ken Anderson, Scott Hunter, Greg Landry, Matt Robinson, Marc Wilson, David Woodley and sacks of Dan Fouts. He had 2 sacks of Joe Ferguson and Jack Thompson and 3 sacks of Pro Football Hall of Famer Bob Griese. He recorded 5 sacks of Bert Jones and 8 sacks of Jets QB Richard Todd. Bishop recovered fumbles by Terry Bradshaw, Mike Hogan, John Riggins, Joe Washington and Richard Todd. He blocked a 40-yard field goal attempt by Mark Moseley in the Patriots 24–22 loss to the Washington Redskins on October 25, 1981. He recorded one safety when he sacked Bob Griese in the Patriots 33–24 win over Miami on October 22, 1978. Bishop participated in 3 sacks of Dan Pastorini in the Patriots 31–14 Divisional Playoff Game loss to Houston on December 31, 1978.

References

1950 births 2016 deaths Players of American football from Cleveland American football defensive linemen Canadian football defensive linemen Glenville High School alumni Louisville Cardinals football players New England Patriots players Miami Dolphins players Los Angeles Rams players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Ottawa Rough Riders players 20th-century American sportsmen {{ULouisville-stub