After teasing it for days, Wednesday night was finally the night – Pat McAfee Live in Pittsburgh. Fans had been counting down, refreshing feeds, and trading guesses about who might show up for the ‘Big Night AHT with Pat McAfee and Friends.’ And we get the excitement. After all, Pittsburgh is Pat’s home turf. The excitement was also because people were hoping Aaron Rodgers might pull a surprise entrance. But the veteran QB didn’t make it to Pittsburgh. Still, the night was far from quiet. Former Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger got a big hometown welcome when he showed up on stage. And there was one more guest who stole the spotlight when he joined McAfee. The man in question is Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh’s golden boy, the pride of the Penguins.
But what was not expected was the unexpected criticism of the Steelers’ 2022 draft pick, Kenny Pickett. Well, we’ll get to that later. But first, here’s how the crowd welcomed NHL star Sidney Crosby. The crowd burst into a cheer when McAfee announced Sidney’s name in one of the segments of the show. Crosby was part of a football-themed challenge for a $1M prize. Giving Crosby his flowers, McAfee said, “Sidney, you are dazzling on the ice. Your skating ability is one of your biggest advantages.”
And then the former punter asked the hockey star if he “played any land sports growing up or just hockey?” Because Sidney was just about to throw a football for a million-dollar shot. “No, a little bit of land sport, a little football, but it’s been a long, long time. Long time,” said Crosby.
FOR ONE MILLION DOLLARS
OF COURSE SIDNEY CROSBY
WHAT A LEGEND #BigNightAHT pic.twitter.com/m1sbNbD2NG
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) April 10, 2025
And as the 37-year-old stood beneath the Stanley Cup championship banners, he threw the football and nailed the target. Bang on! Just like that, Sidney added $1 million to the prize pool, and the crowd went wild. The audience erupted into loud “MVP” chants, echoing through the arena.
And just like that, Crosby’s perfect throw sparked some unexpected jabs at Kenny Pickett on the internet.
Sidney Crosby hits the target, Kenny takes the hit
Drafted in the first round of the 2022, Kenny Pickett’s career hasn’t exactly lived up to first-round expectations. His debut season was a bit of a rollercoaster; concussions kept him sidelined, but whenever he returned to the field, he sparked a little hope in Steelers Nation.
In Week 16, during a game against the Raiders, Pickett threw a clutch 14-yard game-winning touchdown to George Pickens with under a minute left on the clock. That very throw made its way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in March 2023. A week later, against the Ravens, he pulled off another late-game comeback. But then came the injury-plagued sophomore season. And last year, when the Steelers turned to Russell Wilson to lead the offense, Pickett requested a trade.
So yes, when Sidney Crosby nailed that million-dollar throw on stage, the internet wasted no time targeting the former Steelers QB. “Better QB than Kenny Pickett,” wrote a user. Another just stated that the hockey star makes better throws than the footballer, writing, “Sid throws it better than Pickett.” Some even tagged the Steelers playfully, saying that Sidney Crosby could be their QB. “Hey @steelers, still looking for a QB?” A user posted a short clip of Crosby’s throw from the show and wrote, “Sidney Crosby is officially a better Pittsburgh quarterback than Kenny Pickett.” Another threw a jab at Rodgers as well, commenting, “The Steelers have found their man! Who needs Rodgers? #BigNightAHT Crosby da QB.“
Well, no one saw it coming. Who would’ve thought a random fun session would turn into netizens throwing jabs at a QB who was just on a Super Bowl-winning team? Even though Kenny didn’t see much action during his short stint with the Eagles, he still has a Super Bowl LIX tag under his name. Last month, Philly traded the 26-year-old to the Browns. And if Kenny’s right, the Browns are going to give him a shot at being the QB1.
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