With the release of the Chicago Bears' 2025 NFL schedule, it is clear that the NFL believes in the direction of the Bears with Ben Johnson as their head coach.
Beginning with the opening game of the Bears' season, a Monday Night Football contest against the Minnesota Vikings, there are five games scheduled for national television this season.
The other matchups include a Week 6 game against the Washington Commanders on Monday Night Football, a Black Friday game against the Philadelphia Eagles, a Saturday game against the Green Bay Packers on December 20 as part of a FOX doubleheader, and a Sunday Night Football game against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 17.
On the surface level, the Bears are always going to have a handful of games on national television given the market. The Bears are in the third-largest market in the NFL, and the audience is coveted regardless of how the team is performing on the field.
However, there is more at play. Three of the five nationally televised games that the Bears have this season are during the second half of the season. That's not just because of the Chicago market. The NFL clearly believes the Bears will be in the playoff conversation this season, and the games against the Eagles, Packers, and 49ers could certainly have playoff implications.
Ben Johnson has put the national spotlight back on the Chicago Bears.
Johnson was one of the most coveted head coaches in the NFL in recent memory. In each of the last three offseasons, Johnson was believed to be the top candidate available. It was not until the Bears' opening this season that Johnson felt compelled to make the transition from offensive coordinator to head coach.
The hope is that the NFL's belief in the Bears does not backfire, as their national games tend to prove. Johnson's arrival, however, seems to have pushed the Bears into a new direction. Sure, they've won the offseason before, but this year, the focus was on the areas that have caused the biggest headache--the trenches. The hope, and apparent belief from the NFL, is that focus will lead to the Bears being good in 2025.