Some time not long Ave Maria landed in the hands of Noah Brownafter the grown men in the end zone have stopped hugging, after Dan Quinn has found the headphones he yanked from the top of his eternally backward hat, we’ll get down to the cool mechanics of the Washington Commanders season.

With the Chiefs now in sole possession of first place in the NFC East for eight weeks, owning a franchise quarterback, possessing a Tony Stark-like origin story and all the necessary building blocks for a deep run in the winter months, we begins to question the administrative skills of the new Washington office to flip the switch much sooner than they—or anyone else—had expected.

This is how sports work in the ready-made dopamine era. We can see one of the most unfathomable and beautiful pieces we have ever seen, we can see a fan base driven from his troubled past in something much prouder and tastier, we can see one of the few remaining examples of our culture that still makes us childlike and awestruck—and then we quickly wonder: What’s next?

What I’m about to say might be instructive advice for a handful of fans after an absolutely wild Sunday where Jameis Winston, Malik Willis and Jacoby Brissett all blew our minds. Red Zone–melting cacophony that should come with bodily side effects listed (like rapid heartbeat – don’t be gross). But it’s especially true for Commanders fans: let’s hang in there for a moment. Let’s be here right now. We have no idea what will happen tomorrow. We have no idea what will happen at the November 5th trade deadline. We have no idea what channel on the infinite cable menu of the universe will appear, and we have no idea what it means, or if it means anything.

So let’s let them soak. Washington quarterback superhero Jayden Danielsthe likely top pick in the 2024 draft, who is still out after suffering a rib injury last week, completed a pair of passes with a timeout left to move his offense from their own 24-yard line at midfield. Then he dropped back, dodged two fliers, planted his back foot on his own 35-yard line and launched a ball that tracked like one of those tiny, golden fireworks just before the grand final. A U-turned ride that landed in a mass of humanity was hit in the air by a player who he was full of fans during the playand limped into the arms of the only player out of 21 others on the field standing in the end zone. A stadium full of people who were ready to burn that place to the ground two years ago while their former owner fled the country to evading congressional investigationsi looked for someone to shake, smile and scream for a second.

Read that paragraph three times before continuing.

The timing of this game is fortuitous as it aligns with the conclusion of baseball’s postseason, which is still unique among all sports in its ability to channel so many incredible moments, songs, people, energy, dance moves, secret handshakes, hairstyles , McDonald’s mascot costumes and other quirky details at this significant moment in time. Here in the greater New York area, you can still drive past massive Halloween skeletons with an OMG necklace, or a kid in a Grimace costume.

But it wasn’t long before the Mets, who started the season as one of the worst teams in baseball, were caught up in conversations about how that constellation of memories now drives heightened expectations. They have to be better. It must make us feel that way all the time.

We know it’s impossible. Hell, Commanders fans know that better than anyone. It wasn’t that long ago that Robert Griffin III and Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay and Matt LaFleur were all in a room cooking up some of the most stunning offensive football we’ve ever seen amid an amazing and unexpected run to the postseason. . Please don’t make me out to be the bad guy for bringing this up, and please don’t think I’m comparing Daniels to Griffin, or wishing him any ill will, or even making these two names better. sentence for no other reason than to tell you it doesn’t last forever. That sometimes this is the gift. That sometimes it doesn’t culminate in a Super Bowl, and that even though all that planning, all the right trades, all the right draft picks, all the perfect calls get you to a Super Bowl, you still get the middle finger from Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid for that this game will almost always break your heart.

Midway through next week, the first caller will call into a DC radio sports talk show to inquire about Tee Higgins’ availability. The first reporter will ask about what this team needs to take the next step. People at the game will stop talking about what they saw, stop shoving it down their Instagram friends’ throats, and unknowingly step back into a sports world we feel owes us something more. I’m here to warn everyone what a mistake that will be. Because sometimes that’s the best thing. And man, it was awesome.