My first step when working on this project each year is to jot down more than ten names of Chicago Bears players and/or coaches, just to get a sense of who I think will play an important role in the team’s success the coming season. I next shuffle them around, while hacking off the occasional name or two, to get something close to an ordered list.
Then I stare at the group a bit, hemming and hawing, before finally settling on the precise order of my ten. I walk away, and when I come back I always make more changes.