Good morning, Chicago!

And welcome to Super Bowl week.

OK, so Super Bowl week doesn’t mean that much around these parts. Most of our attention is focused on the Bears holding the top pick in the NFL Draft and free agency arrives in just over a month.

Yet the Super Bowl is a reminder of why we’re investing so much time and hope in this pivotal Bears offseason. While I’ve enjoyed the last month of the NFL playoffs, every game day has arrived with a nagging reminder of just how much better it would be if the Bears were playing.

Let’s face it. There’s nothing quite like waking up in January and knowing the Bears have a playoff game later that day. It’s a feeling we’ve only known twice in the past 12 years and one of those was a going-through-the-motions game against the Saints two seasons ago.

When I watch teams like Kansas City, I wonder what it must be like to root for a franchise where a playoff bid is an expectation and not an occasional gift. I wonder what it must be like to get two or three of those Sunday mornings in January and February every single year.

That’s the big dream here in Chicago. For the past four decades, we’ve rooted for a franchise that can’t get out of its own way or even really be bothered to try.

But seeing one team with a generational quarterback face off against a team with a perfect blueprint for the Bears’ future is a reminder that it can all come together with the right people.

And right now, our hopes lie with people named Ryan Poles, Matt Eberflus and Justin Fields. They should look at the two teams down in Arizona and work toward figuring out how they can join them in the postseason every year.

Speaking of Super Bowl week: Adam Hoge, Nicholas Moreano and Mark Carman landed in Arizona last night and will be doing all of this week’s CHGO Bears shows from Radio Row.

They’ll also be at NFL Honors on Thursday night in hopes that Devin Hester will be tabbed for the Hall of Fame in his second year of eligibility. Make sure you’re subscribed to our CHGO Sports YouTube page and following CHGO Bears on Twitter so you don’t miss any of it.

Kevin Kaduk

PS — We’ve been getting rave reviews for the free agency cheat sheet we set up for Diehards and we will soon unveil our draft dashboard, too. Sign up today to make sure you’re as prepared as you can be this offseason.

The Week Ahead

• The NBA trade deadline is Thursday at 2 pm and no one is quite sure what the Bulls will do. They’re riding a two-game winning streak after Saturday’s impressive win over Portland, but tonight’s visit from San Antonio and Tuesday’s trip to Memphis are the types of potholes the team keeps disappearing down. Are they buyers or sellers? The next few days will tell us.
  
• The Blackhawks are back from the All-Star Break and are tied with Columbus for the fewest points in the league (34). Two big Tankathon opponents arrive at the UC this week with Anaheim (37) on Tuesday and Arizona (38) on Friday. I’m looking forward to seeing some of you at Friday’s sold-out CHGO Blackhawks Takeover.
  
• This is the last baseball-free week for the White Sox and Cubs, who will see pitchers and catchers report in Arizona next week. To help tide you over, the CHGO White Sox crew is holding a virtual happy hour for Diehards on Wednesday night at 8.