The Eagles bring their title defense to Soldier Field, and the Bears think they've finally got the pieces to make it a fight.
Share
Show fees
TUE SEP 29 · 7:15 PM CT
Spread
ML
Total
Eagles
Bears
Jalen Hurts spent the offseason adjusting to a wide receiver room that no longer includes A.J. Brown, who's now catching passes in New England. DeVonta Smith becomes the unquestioned WR1, flanked by newcomers Hollywood Brown and Dontayvion Wicks who are still auditioning for real roles behind him. On the other sideline, Caleb Williams gets his first full training camp under Ben Johnson, and by his own account it's already clicking better than any offense he's run since college.
Philadelphia's title defense comes with real questions up front — Lane Johnson, Cam Jurgens and Landon Dickerson are all working back from injury, and the Eagles are hunting for a new offensive coordinator again after Kevin Patullo didn't stick following Kellen Moore's departure. Chicago has its own uncertainty on the back end, where rookie Dillon Thieneman is still fighting for a starting safety job and Kyler Gordon's health matters against a Philadelphia passing attack still figuring itself out.
None of that stopped Chicago from winning the NFC North a year ago and picking up its first playoff win since 2010, and Ben Johnson's group heads into 2026 with a swagger that wasn't there before he showed up. Philadelphia, meanwhile, is defending a championship with a defense that mostly stayed intact even after losing a couple of key names to free agency.
Philadelphia Eagles
Chicago Bears
Philadelphia's finish doubles as a reminder that even a champion has flaws — those two losses to close the season came against a Washington team that was peaking and a 49ers squad that exploited a beat-up secondary. Chicago's stretch run showed the same duality in reverse: capable of hanging 38 points on a good defense one week, then getting out-physicalled by the Lions the next.
Philadelphia Eagles
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries to report
Chicago Bears
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries to report
Monday, September 28's matchup at Soldier Field (7:15 PM CT) won't decide anything by itself, but it's a legitimate measuring stick — a Super Bowl-caliber roster against a team that thinks its rebuild is finally paying off.
