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It's officially NFL schedule release week, marking the final piece of the offseason puzzle before the regular season is set. The Chicago Bears and the other 31 NFL teams will officially get the 2025 schedule on Wednesday, May 14th at 7 p.m. CT. Though the opponents have been known for a few months, the order, dates, and times have yet to be determined, which can play a significant role in how a team performs during the season.
One of the schedule wrinkles that is always fun to see is when a team is set to play in prime time. The NFL showcases marquee matchups on Sunday night, Monday night, Thursday night, and sometimes Saturday night throughout the year. Once again, the Bears should be a popular team this fall, given the buzz surrounding the new coaching staff and the allure of quarterback Caleb Williams. But which games will get selected?
Looking at the different matchups, possible storylines, and historical trends, we made our predictions for which games will get put in the national spotlight this fall and winter. Last year, we correctly predicted five prime-time or stand-alone games with two of the correct matchups. Here are the games we believe will garner more national attention than the others:
The Cowboys and the Bears are two teams coming off a season that began with high expectations yet ended in bitter disappointment. With both teams revamping their coaching staff, each one is hoping for a return to winning football in 2025. Despite having poor records, the Bears and Cowboys are always relevant, and that is proven by the schedule makers.
Ever since the turn of the century, every Bears-Cowboys game played at Soldier Field has been broadcast in prime time. In fact, seven of the nine games between these two teams have come in standalone spots. With offseason buzz high again for Chicago and Dallas—well, being Dallas—this game is ripe for prime time. The revenge factor with former Bears coach Matt Eberflus, now the Cowboys defensive coordinator, adds an extra layer of intrigue.
There was arguably no regular season game across the entire league last season that rivaled the one between the Bears and the Washington Commanders—at least when it came to the mixture of hype and shock when the final whistle blew. Of course, this is referring to the duel between then-rookie quarterbacks Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, which ended with the latter throwing a Hail Mary touchdown pass for the 18-15 victory.
That one game set the course for both franchises for the remainder of the 2024 season, and it's already one of the most anticipated matchups for 2025. The NFL flexed this matchup to the late afternoon slot last year, and they had to have been thrilled with that decision. Why not plan ahead? The Commanders are going to be the NFL's "it" team in 2025, and the league is going to capitalize on a rematch after everything that transpired in last year's game.
Will Aaron Rodgers wind up signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers? That remains to be seen, but even if the four-time MVP and Public Enemy No. 1 among Bears fans doesn't don the black and gold, this matchup still makes a ton of sense for prime time. The Bears and Steelers are two of the most historic teams in the NFL. They also don't play often, seeing as they're in different conferences. The league likes to get these two franchises on national television, even when they aren't having the best seasons.
In their last four games against one another, two of those have taken place in prime time. Given the Steelers have more question marks than they've had in recent memory, including a big one at quarterback, it's unlikely the NFL puts this later in the season. The schedule makers will slot this one in early, and maybe the Bears will get one last chance to exact revenge on Rodgers for his 24-5 career record against them if he decides to play.
We have a pretty good idea that new Bears head coach Ben Johnson and many of the Detroit Lions personnel have this matchup circled on their calendar. It's a good bet the NFL does, too. Johnson built up the Lions' offense over the last three years as offensive coordinator and took a head coaching job with a division rival. Given Johnson's extensive playbook with countless trick plays, one can only wonder what he will have in store for his former team.
The Bears officially entered a new era when they fired Eberflus following a 23-20 Thanksgiving loss to Detroit. A few weeks later, Johnson put his entire resume on full display in Chicago with some insane trickery to boost his candidacy for the job in a 34-17 shellacking. This reunion is made for prime time, and I have a feeling the NFL is going to agree.
For nearly two decades, you could always count on a Bears-Packers game to be on prime time at least once a season. Lately, though, that hasn't been the case. The oldest rivalry in the NFL has now gone two consecutive seasons without a prime-time game for the first time since 1998 and 1999. Perhaps the league realized the nation needed a break after the Bears lost 11 straight games to Green Bay.
Of course, that finally changed in January when the Bears won on a last-second field goal at Lambeau Field to close out the season. Not only was it the lone bright spot the team experienced over the last two months of the year, but it brought back some of the juice in the rivalry that was sorely lacking. The 2025 NFL Draft is proof of that. The league will finally bring this game back to the national spotlight. Maybe even on Christmas.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears 2025 schedule: Predicting prime-time matchups
Continue reading...
One of the schedule wrinkles that is always fun to see is when a team is set to play in prime time. The NFL showcases marquee matchups on Sunday night, Monday night, Thursday night, and sometimes Saturday night throughout the year. Once again, the Bears should be a popular team this fall, given the buzz surrounding the new coaching staff and the allure of quarterback Caleb Williams. But which games will get selected?
Looking at the different matchups, possible storylines, and historical trends, we made our predictions for which games will get put in the national spotlight this fall and winter. Last year, we correctly predicted five prime-time or stand-alone games with two of the correct matchups. Here are the games we believe will garner more national attention than the others:
1. Bears vs. Cowboys
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The Cowboys and the Bears are two teams coming off a season that began with high expectations yet ended in bitter disappointment. With both teams revamping their coaching staff, each one is hoping for a return to winning football in 2025. Despite having poor records, the Bears and Cowboys are always relevant, and that is proven by the schedule makers.
Ever since the turn of the century, every Bears-Cowboys game played at Soldier Field has been broadcast in prime time. In fact, seven of the nine games between these two teams have come in standalone spots. With offseason buzz high again for Chicago and Dallas—well, being Dallas—this game is ripe for prime time. The revenge factor with former Bears coach Matt Eberflus, now the Cowboys defensive coordinator, adds an extra layer of intrigue.
2. Bears at Commanders
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There was arguably no regular season game across the entire league last season that rivaled the one between the Bears and the Washington Commanders—at least when it came to the mixture of hype and shock when the final whistle blew. Of course, this is referring to the duel between then-rookie quarterbacks Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, which ended with the latter throwing a Hail Mary touchdown pass for the 18-15 victory.
That one game set the course for both franchises for the remainder of the 2024 season, and it's already one of the most anticipated matchups for 2025. The NFL flexed this matchup to the late afternoon slot last year, and they had to have been thrilled with that decision. Why not plan ahead? The Commanders are going to be the NFL's "it" team in 2025, and the league is going to capitalize on a rematch after everything that transpired in last year's game.
3. Bears vs. Steelers
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Will Aaron Rodgers wind up signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers? That remains to be seen, but even if the four-time MVP and Public Enemy No. 1 among Bears fans doesn't don the black and gold, this matchup still makes a ton of sense for prime time. The Bears and Steelers are two of the most historic teams in the NFL. They also don't play often, seeing as they're in different conferences. The league likes to get these two franchises on national television, even when they aren't having the best seasons.
In their last four games against one another, two of those have taken place in prime time. Given the Steelers have more question marks than they've had in recent memory, including a big one at quarterback, it's unlikely the NFL puts this later in the season. The schedule makers will slot this one in early, and maybe the Bears will get one last chance to exact revenge on Rodgers for his 24-5 career record against them if he decides to play.
4. Bears at Lions
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We have a pretty good idea that new Bears head coach Ben Johnson and many of the Detroit Lions personnel have this matchup circled on their calendar. It's a good bet the NFL does, too. Johnson built up the Lions' offense over the last three years as offensive coordinator and took a head coaching job with a division rival. Given Johnson's extensive playbook with countless trick plays, one can only wonder what he will have in store for his former team.
The Bears officially entered a new era when they fired Eberflus following a 23-20 Thanksgiving loss to Detroit. A few weeks later, Johnson put his entire resume on full display in Chicago with some insane trickery to boost his candidacy for the job in a 34-17 shellacking. This reunion is made for prime time, and I have a feeling the NFL is going to agree.
5. Bears vs. Packers
You must be registered for see images attach
For nearly two decades, you could always count on a Bears-Packers game to be on prime time at least once a season. Lately, though, that hasn't been the case. The oldest rivalry in the NFL has now gone two consecutive seasons without a prime-time game for the first time since 1998 and 1999. Perhaps the league realized the nation needed a break after the Bears lost 11 straight games to Green Bay.
Of course, that finally changed in January when the Bears won on a last-second field goal at Lambeau Field to close out the season. Not only was it the lone bright spot the team experienced over the last two months of the year, but it brought back some of the juice in the rivalry that was sorely lacking. The 2025 NFL Draft is proof of that. The league will finally bring this game back to the national spotlight. Maybe even on Christmas.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears 2025 schedule: Predicting prime-time matchups
Continue reading...