Aside from his four MVPs, fans commonly associate Aaron Rodgers with his unique success on Hail Mary attempts. He has yet to bring that with him to the Pittsburgh Steelers, but came within a few feet in the team's Week 7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
With his best days now far behind him, Rodgers is more often a subject of fan ridicule than praise on social media in 2025. However, despite his last-second attempt getting batted down at the goal line, fans could not help but be impressed that the 41-year-old even got the ball to the end zone from his own 40-yard line.
Rodgers attempts a Hail Mary but the Bengals have it covered.
CINCY WINS. pic.twitter.com/tXMLNgUlng
— NFL (@NFL) October 17, 2025
Rodgers' throw got 69.8 air yards beneath it, according to Next Gen Stats, making it the longest recorded pass attempt in the NFL since 2017.
“Greatest arm ever,” one fan reacted. “People will say Brady, Manning, Brees, and many others are maybe better. But Rodgers has the best arm ever.”
“Aaron Rodgers with the most impressive incompletion ever seen?” another fan questioned.
“Can we all just give it up to Aaron Rodgers for getting the ball to the end zone on this Hail Mary throw?” a different fan commented.
Rodgers' pass was ultimately batted down by cornerback DJ Ivey, who was in perfect position to leap over the head of DK Metcalf to swat the ball to the turf. Either way, no player has ever made the Hail Mary more interesting than Rodgers routinely does.
Bengals upset Steelers in Week 7 in final seconds
Rodgers' last-ditch effort came moments after the Bengals took a 33-31 lead with seven seconds remaining on an Evan McPherson 36-yard field goal. The chip shot capped off a two-minute, eight-play drive that sealed Joe Flacco's first win in Cincinnati.
With a couple of over-the-hill veterans in Rodgers and Flacco leading the way, not many fans expected the Week 7 Thursday Night Football tilt to be a thrilling affair. Instead, the game proved to be a classic back-and-forth shootout that went down to the wire, making it arguably the best game of the year to date.
Rodgers might not have completed another Hail Mary, but he ended the game with 249 passing yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. The passing yards were his most with the Steelers in a single game, while the four touchdowns tied his season-high Week 1 performance.
Flacco ended with 342 passing yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. In just his second game with the Bengals, the 2023 Comeback Player of the Year led the team to its best offensive game of the year to bump its record up to 3-4.
