Anytime the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers were on national television last season, it was pure gold.
The Bears won two of the three matchups, but each game was decided by one touchdown or less. That's why ESPN named the Week 5 Bears and Packers showdown as one of the games that fans must watch in 2026.
"There were three Bears-Packers games last year. The first in Week 14: 28-21 Packers win that ended on an end zone interception by quarterback Caleb Williams. The next in Week 16: 22-16 overtime victory for the Bears that ended on the enormous DJ Moore post route. And the final one in the wild-card round: 31-27 Bears win that included three fourth-quarter TD drives for Chicago and ended with the drive-by Ben Johnson-Matt LaFleur handshake. The blood is bad between the two historic rivals right now. Tune in!"
Bears-Packers in Week 5 of the 2026 season will be electric
The matchup has everything that a Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers fan would want out of a game. It's going to feature two great quarterbacks, Caleb Williams and Jordan Love, facing off, as well as two head coaches, Ben Johnson and Matt LaFleur, who truly don't like each other.
While Johnson has taken some criticism for the way he has handled the rivalry with his "f*** the Packers" message in the locker room, he deserves a lot of credit for lighting a fire under a rivalry that has not been great in recent memory. Green Bay had dominated the series, really up until 2024, when the Bears split the regular season series.
Last year really changed things with the close matchups and the game-winning scores from both sides. Bears fans will probably appreciate last year more, since they won more games than the Packers and took two out of three.
Read more: Pair of second-year Bears sure seem poised for breakout 2026 seasons
The Bears and Packers used to be a snoozer of a game because Green Bay dominated the series for most of the last decade. That has completely shifted as the Bears are all of a sudden Super Bowl contenders rolling into the 2026 season, bringing a whole new energy to the rivalry. Both games in 2026 are going to be pure cinema for fans of both teams and all NFL fans, as they want the oldest and greatest rivalry to find meaning again.
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