"Bye bye to Kenny Pickett" - NFL fans troll Steelers QB as Mason Rudolph puts on a show vs Bengals

After the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 34-11 on Saturday to keep their playoff hopes alive, this was the notion that entered everyone's minds:

"Kenny Pickett needs to beware of Mason Rudolph!"

As the team's usual starting quarterback was sitting on the bench with an ankle injury, their erstwhile third-stringer had a massive performance, throwing for two touchdowns, both to the recently-maligned George Pickens.

Now it seems as though Pickett has become some sort of pariah within the NFL fanbase, as these Twitter reactions show:

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Days after criticism of blocking comments, George Pickens redeems himself vs Bengals

Back in the Steelers' 10-31 loss at the Indianapolis Colts, George Pickens received criticism for not blocking for Jaylen Warren during a rushing play. He did not exactly help his case when he attempted to justify his inaction, especially when the running back later said he would have blocked for the wide receiver:

"I was trying to prevent a Tank Dell situation. I didn't want to get injured. When you stay in and block somebody, you can get run on very easily."

But on Sunday, Pickens was once again his prolific self. Including his two touchdowns, he caught four passes for 195 yards to breach the 1,000 mark for the first time in his career and become the first Steeler since Diontae Johnson in 2021 to do so.

This led to praise from head coach Mike Tomlin, who had had some brutal words for him during an extraordinary Thursday presser:

"Today, he made some splash plays. That was needed. His pedigree showed, no doubt."

Linebacker Alex Highsmith also had praise, singling out his newfound humility:

"...To see him come out and respond like that was huge. He put his head down and worked, and the results showed today."

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Defense also plays huge role in Steelers' defeat of the Bengals

While Mason Rudolph (somewhat rightfully) gets much credit for the win, he was not the only significant contributor.

The defense, missing four safeties and three inside linebackers, managed to shut out the visitors in the first half. In particular, they got three interceptions and two sacks out of Jake Browning, with Alex Highsmith having one of each.