Sunday, December 28th, 2025. I am recording this in the ungodly 4 a.m. hour. Up early for a 7 a.m. flight out of LaGuardia to New Orleans that just got canceled. So I don't know whether to go back to sleep or stay awake. I'm staying awake. Coffee pot has been started. I wanted to record this because it's valuable in life to take a moment or two and acknowledge when something remarkable has happened. You don't always have to be looking forward to the next thing. You don't always have to be ready to have the next conversation. Sometimes there's real value in sitting still, being calm, and taking stock of a great moment. And last night with the Baltimore Ravens delivering an absolute heavyweight knockout to the Green Bay Packers, the Chicago Bears, in year one of Ben Johnson, in year two of Caleb Williams, have won the NFC North. And there's something sort of, you know, read from Shawshank Redemption, hope is a dangerous thing about being a sports fan. Because the more you allow yourself to believe, the more you are setting yourself up for an emotional, what would you call it, an emotional letdown, an emotional fallout. The more you think that great things are possible, the more the loss as a favorite in the playoffs hurts. But right now, when I look at this league, I see 14 teams go into this postseason, and I can plausibly make an argument for 12 of them to win the Super Bowl. And the fact that we are here on December 28th, in year one of this coach, and year two of this quarterback, is something we all must celebrate. Think about this season and the amazing moments, starting the way they started, the huge letdown against Minnesota, the blowout against Detroit. And then moment after moment, overcoming the refs in D.C., blocking the kick against the Raiders, the love landing, Cincinnati, the throws, Green Bay. Game after game, this team has supplied us with such an entertainment, with such thrills that we need to sit here today and be thankful for what this team has achieved. As long as Ben Johnson is the coach, and Caleb Williams is the quarterback, we will not go into another season not believing this team is capable of great things. That's what happens when you get those two gigs right. When you get coach and quarterback right, and when they're aligned, you never go into a season thinking you don't have a shot. And this team, this year, has just shown it to you right there on the paper. Division title, chance for the one seed still, and why can't they make a run? Why can't this team beat the Rams, the Seahawks, the Niners, this Packers team again? Now they can lose to all those teams, but we're also in a scenario now where as they celebrate their division title, this organization has allowed their fan base to believe again. This organization has finally gotten it right, and it's no longer about projection. It's no longer about, oh, I think they're going to be good in a couple of years, or these two guys keep developing together, they're going to have success. They have now tangibly had success. This program in year one just took a division title, and you've got columns being written by national guys saying the coaching staff is going to be poured through, and those coaches are going elsewhere. That's what happens to good teams. The league is paying attention. Last night as that game ended, I got like 13 texts, mostly from friends, but almost everybody I know in the league sent me a text saying, congrats. Some people even saying, you deserve it. I do not deserve it. I have put very little into this other than 20 years of writing. But the league is paying attention. While the drama now is in Detroit, who are the next coaches going to be? The drama is in Minnesota. Who's the quarterback going to be? The drama is in Green Bay. Is their backup better than their starter, and can their coach win the big one? While the drama is in the other three cities of this division, the city of Chicago has a winner, a division champion in year one of a new program. And it doesn't bother me one bit to say, I don't give a shit what happens in San Francisco tonight. They could lose by 40. They are the division champs. They are going to be home for a playoff game in year one of the coach and year two of the quarterback. Projection be damned. Success is here.