We highlighted last week that the Chicago Bears don't have an ideal stretch of road games to open the 2025 season, and that will serve as a major test for Ben Johnson in his first season as the team's head coach.
CBS Sports added to that harsh reality while breaking down the biggest negative of the Bears' 2025 schedule.
"From Week 6 through Week 15, they'll be playing six road games and EVERY single game will come against a team that finished above .500 last season (Commanders, Bengals, Ravens, Vikings, Eagles, Packers)," John Breech wrote for CBS.
The NFL did the Bears no favors with the games that they play on the road this season. While the Bears are among the teams traveling the fewest amount of miles during the 2025 season, the level of competition they are playing on the road will be an ultimate litmus test for Johnson.
The Bears' 2025 road schedule is doing them no favors
If there is a silver lining in the Bears' road opponents, it's that the games against the Bengals, Ravens, Eagles, and Packers will come during the second half of the season. For a Bears team installing a new offense and defense, chances are they will be a much stronger unit during the second half of the season than they are during the opening weeks of the season.
The difficult stretch of road games also heightens the importance of the Bears having success during their home games. Among the teams that the Bears play at home are the New Orleans Saints, Cleveland Browns, and New York Giants. Of note, those games come after road games against the Commanders, Bengals, and Packers. If anything, it will be a perfect opportunity for the Bears to course-correct following a pivotal game on the road.
Lack of success on the road is one of the things that doomed the Matt Eberflus tenure. Johnson's hire was meant to correct the past and put the Bears on a new path. Winning on the road will prove that.