Good morning, Bears fans!

Today’s schedule release day, but at least eight Bears games have already been leaked including a Week 1 surprise.

There’s also a schedule out there that has gotten everything right so far … and it was posted in the comments of a TikTok reel. It’s 2026, after all.

Let’s jump into everything we know … and everything we thought we knew.

— Kevin Kaduk

Get ad-free newsletters and exclusive content
Become a Bears By 7 member!

01 Bears Schedule
For openers, it’s Carolina, not Seattle
Tell me you saw this one coming and we’ll all call you a liar. Jordan Schultz reported the Patriots were headed to Seattle for Week 1 around 5 pm on Wednesday and then dropped a Chicago-Carolina premiere about 90 minutes later. Not exactly what any of us were envisioning, but we’ll get more into that later.

02 Bears Schedule
Plenty of primetime games
Seven additional games have been reported, four in primetime or on a holiday.
• September 28 (MNF) - Eagles
• October 22 (TNF) - Patriots
• November 8 (SNF) - Buccaneers
• November 22 - Saints
• November 26 (Thanksgiving) - at Lions
• January 3 - Lions
• January 10 - Vikings
Only the Thanksgiving game has officially been confirmed by the league and team.

03 NFL Schedule
Thanksgiving Eve game for Pack
The Rams will host the Packers for a game on Netflix. Won’t lie: I like the idea of picking up a game on both Green Bay and Detroit before dinner is even served the next day.

How 2M+ Professionals Stay Ahead on AI

What’s the secret to staying ahead of the curve in the world of AI? Information.

Luckily, you can join 2,000,000+ early adopters reading The Rundown AI — the free newsletter that makes you smarter on AI with just a 5-minute read per day.

Sign up to start learning.

What just happened?

— # (#)

Well I guess that’s what I get for making an “ass” out of “u” and “me.”

After months of believing the NFL would see the Bears as the perfect first date for the Seahawks in Week 1, we were stiffed by the league’s decision to send the Patriots out for a Super Bowl rematch instead.

I have to admit I don’t get it. Last year’s Super Bowl was a dud and now Mike Tirico is put in the position of dancing around Mike Vrabel’s offseason … all while Drake Maye manages his first drive of the year? Good times.

You can’t tell me that’s a bigger draw than seeing Caleb Williams facing that Seahawks defense.

My initial impulse was to say the NFL doesn’t quite revolve around the Bears just yet, but seeing all the other primetime game shows Roger Goodell has plenty of faith in the drawing power of Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson.

Instead, I think it’s important to remember the NFL is scheduling out an entire season. They can’t fully optimize one week when there are more than 4,000 computers making sure the schedule works over all 18. Sending the Patriots out in Week 1 instead of the Bears may have been the key that unlocked a hundred other pathways.

In other words, no need to take it personal. The Chiefs have opened seasons against the Jaguars, Cardinals and Browns in the last decade … and they were winning Super Bowls with Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

Other takeaways from the early leaks:

Week 1 in Carolina isn’t the sexiest premiere, but it’s far from a gimme game. The defending NFC South champions made a big splash in free agency with EDGE Jaelan Phillips and linebacker Devin Lloyd. Throw in the history of the Bryce Young trade and there’s some real intrigue. While I assumed the league was headed toward Bears-Packers in Week 1 after the Patriots-Seahawks news dropped, this is probably a preferable way to start the season … a solid test without big divisional consequences.
The Bears could be facing a fatigued Lions team. Detroit is scheduled to face the Patriots in Munich on Sunday, November 15. If they don’t get a bye the following Sunday — something that’s been rumored — they’ll be paying three games and coming back from Europe within a span of 11 days.
Thanksgiving Sunday is going to seem empty. The addition of the Thanksgiving Eve and Black Friday games takes another four teams from the weekend and this year’s Wednesday-Friday slate is LOADED: Packers vs. Rams, Bears vs. Lions, Eagles vs. Cowboys, Chiefs vs. Bills, Broncos vs Steelers.
Will the TikTok schedule go 18-for-18? I mentioned the slate that was leaked in the comments of Connor Burns’ Tik Tok and I’ve embedded it below. The big takeaway is that the Packers are coming to town for Christmas and that December/January is an absolute killer with three division games to close. Bears will have to nail the early part of the slate (not easy either) if they want to survive it.