Bears 2026 Schedule Release Predictions: Chicago opens season against Super Bowl champs, plus holiday date vs. bitter rival
The NFL will be releasing the full schedule for the 2026 regular season later this week and there’s no better time than now to make some schedule predictions for what the Chicago Bears’ slate could look like.
Later this week, the NFL will announce the 2026 regular season schedule for all 32 teams and fans will eagerly be awaiting the schedule release videos posted by the individual teams. The Chicago Bears also have some specific dates they’ll be waiting to hear about.
After the success the team had last season under head coach Ben Johnson, the nation is going to see a lot more of the Chicago Bears on primetime with standalone matchups against top teams.
Before we get to the actual release on Thursday night, let’s make some predictions for what we might see get announced.
Chicago Bears’ 2026 Opponents
Opponents are determined at the conclusion of the prior season.
- Home: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints
- Away: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks
1. Chicago Bears open the season in Seattle to take on the defending Super Bowl champs
At this point, this seems inevitable. There’s no better matchup to open the season on a Wednesday night than the Cardiac Bears taking on the defending Super Bowl champs. The last time these two teams faced off, it was a 6-3 snooze fest on Thursday Night Football late in the 2024 season. A lot has changed for both franchises since then.
Chicago now gets to open the season on the road against the reigning champs to see how they match up against the top dog in the NFL. This would be an instant classic to kick off the 2026 season and the viewership would be through the roof for this game. It’s an easy call for the league to make.
2. Bears travel back across the pond for an “away” game against the Atlanta Falcons
The other specific date the Bears are waiting to hear about involves one of the remaining unannounced international games that will be held in Marid, Spain. The only thing we know right now is that the Atlanta Falcons will be the home team for that game. The Falcons also happen to be one of Chicago’s away opponents in 2026 and the Bears hold marketing rights in Spain.
On Wednesday morning, the NFL will fully announce the full international slate and I expect this to be made official. Caleb Williams and Bijan Robinson would give this game plenty of star talent on both sides to excite an international crowd. I’ll also predict that this game will held either be before or after Chicago’s bye week to give the team proper travel timing.
3. Bears vs. Packers first matchup will be held on Thanksgiving, Black Friday, or Christmas
The real matchup everyone will be waiting to see on the official release will be the two games between the Bears and Packers. Last season, both games were held in December or later and it was a massive success that added a lot more weight to both of those games. The NFL should stick to that recipe.
My prediction, the first matchup between the Bears and Packers in 2026 will be held on a holiday to maximize the viewership (Thanksgiving, Black Friday, or Christmas) with the second matchup being held in Week 18 (NFC North title on the line, anyone?).
4. Bears will have at least five primetime/standalone games in 2026
Last, but not least, our final prediction involves the number of primetime/standalone games the Bears will play this upcoming season. We already spoiled two for this prediction with the Wednesday night game against Seattle and one of the Packers games being on a holiday.
I can see at least three more primetime/standalone games being added to that total. The matchups against the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots are two easy options to be a night game and I could see another divisional game (Lions or Vikings) being a night game as well. A sixth could be considered if the NFC North title is up for grabs between the Bears and Packers in Week 18.