Tag: Bears schedule

Projected 2022 Bears opponents heading into Week 18

Here’s a look at the Bears’ projected 2022 opponents heading into the regular season finale.

The Chicago Bears are heading into their final game of the 2021 season, which will mark the end of what’s been a tumultuous, disappointing season. Which means their 2022 opponents are nearly set.

The Bears will face the AFC East and NFC East next season, which includes home games against the Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles and Miami Dolphins, as well as away games against the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots and New York Jets.

With the Bears projected to finish third in the NFC North, they’ll also face the same-place finisher in the NFC South and NFC West. With that additional 17th game, they’ll host the AFC South same-place finisher.

Here’s a look at the Bears’ projected 2022 opponents:

Forecasting the Bears’ remaining schedule after first 6 games

With the Bears in the middle of their most difficult portion of their schedule, we’re forecasting Chicago’s final 11 games.

Through the first six weeks of the season, the Chicago Bears are standing at 3-3 in the midst of the toughest part of their schedule, and they’re exactly who we thought they were.

The Bears have been riding a dominant defense with the NFL’s best pass rushes, as they lead the league with 20 sacks, including 11.5 combined between Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn. The offense has gotten worse under Matt Nagy, but they have an impressive three-headed monster at running back with David Montgomery, Damien Williams and Khalil Herbert, as well as an exciting rookie quarterback in Justin Fields, who’s progressing every game.

With the Bears in the middle of their most difficult portion of their schedule, we’re forecasting Chicago’s final 11 games.

Download our 2021 Chicago Bears schedule wallpaper featuring Justin Fields

Never miss a game with our Bears Wire downloadable 2021 Chicago Bears schedule.

It’s hard to believe that we’re just over a week away from the start of the Chicago Bears’ 2021 regular season, which kicks off against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday Night Football.

Now, you’ll never have to miss a game with our Bears Wire downloadable 2021 Bears schedule, which you can use as a wallpaper for your smartphone.

Download the schedule wallpaper below:

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The Bears had the most difficult schedule among playoff teams

Chicago’s path to the playoffs was more difficult than any other team, as they had the hardest strength of schedule among playoff teams.

It might seem like an entire season ago, but there was a time when the Chicago Bears were the top seed in the NFC at 5-1. One of the complaints was that the Bears were playing a relatively easy schedule. While it’s true they were beating bad teams — as they should’ve been doing — when all was said and done, they ultimately played one of the most difficult schedules in the NFL.

The Bears had the hardest strength of schedule of any postseason team, according to Football Outsiders. Chicago had the ninth most-difficult schedule, which ranked just ahead of the Los Angeles Rams (10th) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (11th).

Obviously the caveat is that the Bears beat just one team with a winning record this season, which was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers back in Week 5. They posted six losses to teams with winning records, including four playoff teams in the Green Bay Packers, Los Angeles Rams Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans and New Orleans Saints.

Chicago will look to reverse their misfortunes against winning teams on Sunday when they face New Orleans in the wild-card round.

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Bears-Jaguars’ Week 16 game moving from FOX to CBS

The NFL has moved the Chicago Bears’ Week 16 match-up against the Jacksonville Jaguars from FOX to CBS, the league announced Monday.

With just three games remaining this season, the Chicago Bears are still holding onto slim playoff hopes. That after the Bears snapped their six-game losing streak with a dominant 36-7 victory over the Houston Texans in Week 14.

But to have any chance at squeaking into the playoffs, they’re going to need to take care of business over the next three weeks. Which is certainly doable, at least in two of their last three games.

The NFL has moved Chicago’s Week 16 match-up against the Jacksonville Jaguars from FOX to CBS, the league announced Monday. But rest assured, the game remains at Noon CT.

Chicago’s final three games feature two divisional showdowns, starting with this Sunday’s Week 15 contest against the Minnesota Vikings. That’s followed by the Jaguars game before the Bears close things out against the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field in Week 17.

Whether Chicago will be contending for that final wild card spot remains to be seen. But it’s always good when the Bears are playing meaningful football in December.

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Chicago Bears release 2020 uniform schedule

The Bears officially announced the schedule for uniform combinations for their home and away schedule this fall.

As the Chicago Bears prepare to take the field against the Detroit Lions to open the regular season, there’s a lot of excitement with the start of the new season.

One of the surprises that will hopefully help make the wait until Sunday’s game a little easier is the unveiling of the Bears’ uniform schedule. The Bears officially announced the schedule for uniform combinations for their home and away schedule this fall.

Chicago will wear their white jerseys in all eight of their away games, including Sunday’s season opener against Detroit.

For their eight home games, the Bears will wear three different uniform combinations. Chicago will wear their traditional navy jerseys in Week 2 against the New York Giants, Week 5 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Week 8 against the New Orleans Saints, Week 13 against the Lions and Week 17 against the Packers.

The Bears will also don their alternate orange jerseys in two games, including Week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts and Week 10 against the Minnesota Vikings.

Then, they’ll sport their classic white jerseys, which were unveiled for the team’s centennial celebration, in Week 14 against the Houston Texans.

In all, the Bears will don four different uniform combinations throughout the 2020 season. Although, none of that will matter if the Bears don’t impress on the field.

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ESPN FPI gives Bears 41 percent chance of making playoffs in 2020

The Bears are looking to rebound following a disappointing 2019 season, and ESPN gives them a fair chance at making the postseason in 2020.

Just one year removed from a postseason appearance and a 12-4 record, the Chicago Bears stumbled to a 8-8 record in 2019, following an abysmal performance by the offense.

No one is giving the Bears a chance this season, and some have even declared that Chicago will be among the worst teams in the NFL this season. But it’s hard to logically argue that point, considering the Bears were able to win eight games despite the team’s failures last season.

According to ESPN’s FPI, the Bears have a 41 percent chance of making the playoffs this season, and they’re projected to replicate their eight wins from a year ago.

The Bears’ chances of making the postseason increased with the new collective bargaining agreement, where the playoff field expands from six to seven teams per conference, adding an additional wildcard spot.

While many question Chicago’s ability to rebound next season, especially in a talented NFC North, it’s worth noting that the Bears have relatively the same roster — with a few exceptions — that they had when they surprised the NFL in 2018. The Bears also upgraded at some positions and addressed holes, including at quarterback with Nick Foles, pass rusher with Robert Quinn and added two new starters in the secondary in cornerback Jaylon Johnson and safety Tashaun Gipson.

Ultimately, the Bears have a favorable stretch in their schedule early on in the season, which could help set the tone for the remainder of the season, where they’ll face playoff teams in seven of their final nine games.

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Shocker: NFL analyst believes Bears will clinch NFC’s No. 1 seed in 2020

Many NFL analysts believe the Bears will be terrible in 2020, but Nick Wright believes the Bears will be one of the NFL’s best teams.

The Chicago Bears have taken the brunt of NFL analysts this offseason, where several of them have declared they’ll be among the worst teams in the league in 2020.

Following a disappointing 2019 season, it’s easy to understand where the doubt comes from. But you also have to factor in the fact that the Bears were still able to win eight games during a season where their offense floundered and their defense suffered significant losses with injuries to defensive tackle Akiem Hicks, Danny Trevathan and Roquan Smith.

While the Bears aren’t considered favorites to return to the playoffs, there’s no reason to believe they’ll regress to three wins in 2020. Especially considering the Bears made some offseason moves to bolster their team, including quarterback Nick Foles, tight ends Jimmy Graham and Cole Kmet, as well as pass rusher Robert Quinn and cornerback Jaylon Johnson.

But there is one NFL analyst that believes the Bears will be one of the best teams in the league next season. Nick Wright has been predicting the NFL’s 2020 schedule, and when he got to the NFC North, Wright had a shocking prediction.

Wright believes the Bears will win 12 games and clinch the division in Week 17 with a win over the hated Packers. According to the graphic, Wright also has Chicago as the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

Wright’s reasoning for the Bears shocking the NFL has to do with their struggles in 2019 — and how they ultimately were able to eke out eight wins despite those fallacies. They added Foles, they’re getting back Hicks and Trevathan and Chicago’s defense should be able to force more takeaways than last season, where they were among the worst in the league.

Something that the Bears haven’t been associated with this offseason is optimism, so it’s a satisfying deviation from the norm. Wright believes that the Bears will be one of the last undefeated teams in the NFL in 2020, citing the favorable early stretch of their schedule as a reason why. He has their first loss coming on the road against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 7 on Monday Night Football.

While it might seem a little extreme to believe the Bears could lock up the No. 1 seed in the NFC at this point, it’s not impossible to believe. If Chicago’s defense returns to its dominant form in 2020 and the offense operates effectively, there’s no reason to believe that the Bears won’t be in contention for the NFC North title and perhaps the top seed in the conference.

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2020 Bears schedule: Fourth quarter breakdown

Let’s take a look at the Bears’ fourth-quarter games of the 2020 season, including way-too-early game predictions.

The Chicago Bears unveiled their 2020 schedule last week, where we learned exactly when they’ll face their 2020 opponents. While the beginning of the season looks favorable, Chicago faces a difficult stretch in the final nine games.

When looking at the fourth quarter of the Bears’ 2020 schedule, it’s arguably their most difficult stretch, as they’ll play three of their final four games against playoff teams from a year ago in the Houston Texans, Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers.

Let’s take a look at the Bears’ fourth-quarter games of the 2020 season, including way-too-early game predictions.

Week 14 | Bears vs. Texans

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The Bears will kick-off the final quarter of the season against a team that they haven’t been able to beat in four meetings, the Houston Texans. And they’ll have to face another quarterback they passed up in the 2017 NFL Draft in Deshaun Watson, who has a chip on his shoulders knowing the Bears never showed interest in him. Watson aside, the Bears will have to contend with the Texans defense, who has some playmakers like JJ Watt that will challenge their offense. If the Bears happen to be in the playoff race this late in the season, this is one of those games that they need to win.

Prediction: Texans, 24-17

Check out game-by-game score predictions from around the NFL Wires network:

Buf / Mia / NE / NYJ // Bal / Cin / Cle / Pit // Hou / Ind / Jax / Ten // Den / KC / LV / LAC //// Dal / NYG / Phi / Was // Chi / Det / GB / Min // Atl / Car / NO / TB // Ari / LAR / SF / Sea

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Everyone is doubting the Bears, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing

Not many have confidence in Chicago for the 2020 season. But the Bears have already proven that they thrive in the underdog role.

You’ll have a hard time finding many that have confidence in the Chicago Bears heading into 2020. Which makes sense given their disappointing 2019 season just one year removed from a 12-4 campaign.

At this point, it’d be hard to sell the Bears as winning the NFC North and locking up a playoff spot, but it’s not hard to sell Chicago as a team that should be better in 2020. Especially considering their deficiencies, particularly on offense, last season and the upgrades they made this offseason.

But there’s a difference between reasonable expectations and ridiculous takes — although, at this point, it’s safe to say not many put onus on offseason predictions for a season that’s still four months away.

Well, except for the teams. And you can bet that for a team like the Bears, that are used to having the odds stacked against them, that this is the kind of disrespect that they’ll use to fuel their 2020 run.

The Bears have already proven that they thrive in the underdog role. Look no further than 2018, which marked the beginning of the Matt Nagy era. The Bears shocked everyone when they marched to a 12-4 record and a No. 3 seed in the postseason.

Not that these 2020 Bears are going to replicate the magic that was the 2018 season. That season was truly special. But can the Bears pull off a similar surprise? Maybe, although we can’t say that at this point of the offseason. Chicago still has questions to answer and doubters to prove wrong.

But coming off a 8-8 season — where the offense was among the worst in the NFL and the defense still thrived amid injuries — it’s blasphemous to think that this team will be among the worst in the league next season.

Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller and USA Today’s Nate Davis believe that the Bears will be among the worst teams in 2020 — ranking them among the bottom dwellers like the New York Giants, Carolina Panthers and Washington Redskins.

And this kind of disrespect is exactly what the Bears can — and will — use to motivate them even more to return to respectability in 2020.

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