Yahoo Sports NFL
Chicago Bears 2026 Schedule Release: News, Leaks, and Rumor Tracker
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The NFL will officially drop the 2026 schedule in a big prime-time special on Thursday, May 14, at 7 p.m. CT on NFL Network. The Chicago Bears, and the other 31 teams in the League, will also have a fun schedule release video prepped and ready to hit social media at that same time.However, various NFL broadcast partners will be able to announce some of their games before Thursday, so we’ll track some of those here. We’ll also track the leaks from local and national reporters on the key dates around the League, and for the Bears’ 18-week schedule below.AdvertisementUPDATE: The Bears are not playing an International game.Our partners at FanDuel have Chicago’s win total at 9.5 (over +110/under -130), and in case you were wondering, last year at this time it was at 8.5. They are third to win the NFL North at +320, with their playoff odds at +108. If you have the Bears winning the NFC, you can get that at +1300, with their odds to win the Super Bowl at +2500. There are several player props as well, like Caleb Williams winning MVP at +1600 and Dillon Thieneman winning Defensive Rookie of the Year at +2200, so hit up our partners at FanDuel if you want to sprinkle a little on the 2026 season.While you’re waiting for all the game day specifics, here are Chicago’s 2026 opponents.HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville JaguarsAdvertisementAWAY: Lions, Packers, Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle SeahawksKeep in mind that unless the NFL announces the game, these are all to be considered rumors until the League makes it official. Also, some of these are my educated guesses based on the schedule leaks from the other teams the Bears are playing.2026 Bears Schedule Rumor TrackerPreseasonWeek 1 –Week 2 –Week 3 –Regular SeasonWeek 1 – Bears at Panthers (link)Week 2 – Vikings at the Bears (All these rumors without a link were shared via a TikTok screenshot, so I don’t know the source, but so far they look legit. If other rumors come up, I’ll link them.)AdvertisementWeek 3 – Eagles at Bears on Monday Night Football (link)Week 4 – Jets at BearsWeek 5 – Packers at Bears at 3:25Week 6 – Bears at FalconsWeek 7 – Patriots at Bears on Thursday Night Football (link)Week 8 – Bears at Seattle on Monday Night FootballWeek 9 – Buccaneers at Bears on Sunday Night Football (link)Week 10 – BYE WEEKWeek 11 – Saints at BearsWeek 12 – Bears at Lions on Thanksgiving on CBS in the early slot (link)Week 13 – Jacksonville at ChicagoWeek 14 – Bears at MiamiWeek 15 – Bears at Bills on SaturdayWeek 16 – Bears at Green Bay on ChristmasWeek 17 – Lions at Bears at 3:25 CT (link)Week 18 – Bears at the Vikings (link)AdvertisementOnce the specifics for the Bears’ games are announced, we’ll share the dates, times, and channel information in a new article here at WCG, so stay tuned!Some high-profile game rumors and announcements regarding the 2026 NFL seasonThe Bears will not open the season in Seattle… The Patriots will.Big rumors flowing that the Bears will play on Thanksgiving and Christmas.The Lions are hosting the Patriots in Germany, so the Bears are playing all their games in the United States. (link)The Falcons will host the Bengals in Spain, so the only other possibility for the Bears playing internationally would be vs the Lions, who host a game in Germany. And before you ask, yes, the NFL has had divisional games played internationally before.The Chiefs and Broncos are on week 1 of Monday Night Football.Eagles at Cowboys on Thanksgiving is official.The Buffalo Bills will host the Lions in week 2 on Thursday Night Football to open their new stadium.There’s a growing rumor from New England that the Patriots will head to Seattle for the season opener… BUT NOT SO FAST MY FRIENDS… Adam Schefter thinks it’ll be the Bears in Seattle for the season opener… Then again, this guy has been known to get schedule leaks in the past, and he says the Patriots are going to Seattle.NBC announced that they will get an extra Week 17 game on Saturday, Jan. 2, 2027, at 3:30 p.m. CT on NBC and Peacock (link)On Thursday night, join Ryan Droste and Bryan Orenchuk for a LIVE Bears Over Beers on our 2nd City Gridiron YouTube channel, where they’ll be discussing the NFL Schedule!
Takes mentioned in this episode
- Detroit Lions team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- Minnesota Vikings team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- New Orleans Saints team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- New England Patriots team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- New York Jets team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- Philadelphia Eagles team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- Jacksonville Jaguars team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- Atlanta Falcons team · neutral
“AWAY: Lions, Packers, Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks”
Away games for the Bears in 2026
- Buffalo Bills team · neutral
“AWAY: Lions, Packers, Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks”
Away games for the Bears in 2026
- Carolina Panthers team · neutral
“AWAY: Lions, Packers, Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks”
Away games for the Bears in 2026
- Miami Dolphins team · neutral
“AWAY: Lions, Packers, Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks”
Away games for the Bears in 2026
- Seattle Seahawks team · neutral
“AWAY: Lions, Packers, Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks”
Away games for the Bears in 2026
- Dillon Thieneman player · positive
“There are several player props as well, like Caleb Williams winning MVP at +1600 and Dillon Thieneman winning Defensive Rookie of the Year at +2200, so hit up our partners at FanDuel if you want to sprinkle a little on the 2026 season.”
Player prop bets for the Bears in 2026
- Chicago Bears team · neutral
“The Chicago Bears, and the other 31 teams in the League, will also have a fun schedule release video prepped and ready to hit social media at that same time.”
NFL schedule release details
- Green Bay Packers team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
Home games for the Bears in 2026
- Chicago Bears team · neutral
“They are third to win the NFL North at +320, with their playoff odds at +108”
Betting odds for division and playoff outcomes
- Chicago Bears team · neutral
“If you have the Bears winning the NFC, you can get that at +1300, with their odds to win the Super Bowl at +2500”
Betting odds for conference and championship outcomes
- Chicago Bears team · neutral
“Our partners at FanDuel have Chicago's win total at 9.5 (over +110/under -130)”
Betting line for 2026 season win total
- Chicago Bears team · positive
“The Chicago Bears, and the other 31 teams in the League, will also have a fun schedule release video prepped and ready to hit social media at that same time.”
Discussing the official NFL schedule release date.
- Caleb Williams player · neutral
“like Caleb Williams winning MVP at +1600”
Mentioned as a betting prop option for 2026 MVP award
- Dillon Thieneman player · neutral
“Dillon Thieneman winning Defensive Rookie of the Year at +2200”
Mentioned as a betting prop option for 2026 Defensive Rookie of the Year award
- Caleb Williams player · negative
“There are several player props as well, like Caleb Williams winning MVP at +1600 and Dillon Thieneman winning Defensive Rookie of the Year at +2200, so hit up our partners at FanDuel if you want to sprinkle a little on the 2026 season.”
There are several player props as well, like Caleb Williams winning MVP at +1600 and Dillon Thieneman winning Defensive Rookie of the Year at +2200, so hit up our partners at FanDuel if you want to sp
- Detroit Lions team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Green Bay Packers team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Minnesota Vikings team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars
- New Orleans Saints team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars
- New England Patriots team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars
- New York Jets team · neutral
“HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars”
HOME: Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars