Bears’ scariest pitfall to overcome on 2026 NFL schedule

Now the Bears must continue to build off that success in 2026. It will be much more challenging because none of their opponents will look at Chicago as anything but a contender. They are the Monsters of the Midway once again, and this version has a quarterback who can deliver big plays on a regular basis.

Williams has shown he can play his best football when the game is on the line in the fourth quarter, and he clearly has a couple of big-time receivers in wideout Rome Odunze and tight end Colston Loveland. The hope is that WRs Luther Burden and Kalif Raymond will step up.

The Bears could have issues on defense. Much of their success last year came because of their ability to force turnovers. They led the league with 33 takeaways, 23 of which were interceptions. However, the Bears ranked 29th on defense, giving up 361.8 yards per game, ranking ahead of Dallas, Cincinnati and Washington. If the Bears can’t match last year’s success at taking the ball away from opponents, they could be in significant trouble on the defensive side of the ball.

Bears’ schedule has soft beginning 

The integration of the wide receivers into the offense and the overall performance of the defense are to of the issues that Ben Johnson and his coaching staff will be most concerned with this season. The team’s schedule is quite another story.

The Bears knew who their opponents would be long before the schedule release and they touted how difficult their first-place schedule would be in 2026. They will face 12 opponents who had winning records last season and eight of them were playoff teams.

However, despite that issue, there’s an excellent chance that the Bears can get off to a 3-1 start — or better — and that would give them the momentum that Johnson and Williams need to be successful.

By opening the season with a road game against the Panthers followed by home games against the Vikings, Eagles and Jets, a strong getaway should be on board. The Panthers were one of the teams on the schedule that made the playoffs last year but they had a losing record (8-9) and the Bears should have their way with them. The Vikings are unsettled at the quarterback position and there are issues on defense.

The Bears beat the Eagles last season in Philadelphia, so they should have a good chance of doing the same at home, and facing the Jets at home could be the easiest game on the schedule.

Another positive factor is that they will play three of those first four game at noon (Central Time) on Sunday. The Bears have five prime time games scheduled this season, and the game against the Eagles is a Monday night confrontation. The games against the Panthers, Vikings and Jets are all of the noon variety.

As long as injuries or overconfidence don’t have an outsized impact on the Bears, they should start the season on a winning note as they get into the meat of the schedule

Brutal stretch at midseason could be their undoing

The Bears face their toughest stretch at midseason when they play last year’s two Super Bowl participants in back-to-back weeks followed by a game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

It actually starts with two road games following their opening stretch. They go to Green Bay and Atlanta in Weeks 5 and 6. The Packers will be primed to beat the Bears at home after losing two of three to Chicago last season and the Falcons could be a major challenge.

The schedule gauntlet of a home game against the Patriots, a road game against the Seahawks and a home game against the Bucs follow before their bye week. Tampa Bay did not make the playoffs last season, but the Bucs were postseason participants in the four previous seasons and they could return to top form this season.

The Bears have to negotiate this stretch in a winning fashion or else they could be struggling to match last year’s success. A three-game losing streak could be disastrous.

There are also several tough games in the second half of the season, with the most challenging coming against the Lions (twice) and the Bills. December home games against the Jaguars and Packers (Christmas Day) could also prove to be very difficult.

The confidence level of the team in the second half of the season will be determined by the three-game stretch prior to the bye. If they can win two of those three games, they should be in a solid position to negotiate the remainder of the schedule.