CHICAGO _ Matt Nagy used both hands to clutch his gold NFL Coach of the Year trophy once his right hand was free. It was only natural to shake hands first with the men who presented it to him, Joe Namath and Barry Sanders.
No big deal. Just a couple of Hall of Famers and a washed-up Division I-AA quarterback on stage in front of an A-list crowd of NFL stars and legends.
Nagy wore a navy suit with a Bears-orange tie. He stepped to the microphone at the Fox Theater in Atlanta and began his 2-minute, 38-second acceptance speech with the word that reflexively came to him: "Wow."
"It's a humbling award," he said. "It's ... a reflection of our Chicago Bears family. This represents all of us. This is a 'we' award."
It was not, however, the 'we' award.
That one, the Lombardi Trophy, was claimed the following night by Bill Belichick and the Patriots. Nagy watched that, green as an Augusta National fairway, just like everyone else whose season ended with a gut punch.
Those 24 hours in February embodied a bittersweetness that guided Nagy and the Bears through the offseason to Thursday night's season opener against the Packers. It became an eight-month-long balance beam Nagy has tiptoed with extreme focus and care.
On one side were all the personal and collective successes that made 2018 so special. The NFC North championship. Seven wins in nine games at Soldier Field. Three wins in 12 November days. Coach and executive of the year awards for Nagy and general manager Ryan Pace. Four All-Pro nominations and eight Pro Bowl berths for players.
On the other side were the individual and shared failures. The home playoff loss. The anguish after the double doink. The 21st-ranked offense. The regrettable play calls and clock management that pinched Nagy at random offseason moments.
Nagy pulled from both categories in crafting his message to this year's team, determined to find the perfect mix to continue the Bears' ascent.
"As crushed as we were to go 12-5 and lose where we did, the players now believe that we can win it all," he said. "That's half of the battle. Now it's, OK, how do we do that?"
It starts, Nagy said, with the same road map that proved reliable last season. That explains the video.
It's famous by now. Or infamous, if you're among those who believe Nagy has overcooked the kicker situation.
In the spring, Nagy had the Bears video department produce a montage of highlights from 2018. The six defensive touchdowns. Mitch Trubisky's six-touchdown game. Khalil Mack's speed. Akiem Hicks' strength. On and on.
But at the end, Nagy went all Alfred Hitchcock.
"The missed field goal," left tackle Charles Leno explains. "It was: Remember the hurt. Coach Nagy puts things in perspective, like, yes, we accomplished a lot. But we left so much out there that we didn't accomplish that we could have. With that, it sharpens our mindset."
