With the conclusion of Week 18’s final Sunday Night Football matchup of the year, the end of the 2025 NFL regular season has become a reality. For the 14 teams headed to the playoffs, a new season has begun. For the 18 other teams that missed the dance, their offseasons will get a jumpstart. Especially those who will be in the market for a new head coach and/or general manager. Every year, it seems like the season goes by in the blink of an eye, even with the extra game added in. As usual, there were plenty of surprise teams,...

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARSSSSSS

Bears coach Ben Johnson won’t use short playoff prep week as an excuse

The Packers didn’t play their starters Sunday but the Bears did. While coach Ben Johnson defended his decision after the game — “Some teams, they rest their starters [but] we don’t, we play football,” he said — the playoff schedule might have conspired against him.

Bears coach Ben Johnson looks to wake team up ahead of playoff showdown with Packers

Johnson has picked his spots to get fiery with the team about poor play, and this seems like a good time to...

For three quarters, the Chicago Bears looked like a team sleepwalking towards the end of the season, while the Detroit Lions played with passion and urgency. Through three quarters, one team was playing to prove something to the NFL, while the other was playing like they were content to be there.

And then the fourth quarter happened, and the Bears woke up and remembered they had something to play for.

But it was too little too late as the Lions held on to win, 19 to 16.

What a disappointing end to a remarkable regular season, but unlike previous years,...

The Chicago Bears were hoping to end the 2025 regular season with some momentum, but following their loss to the Detroit Lions, they seemingly ended the season with more concerns than reasons to feel optimistic about the playoffs.

The game was certainly a much closer affair than the 31 point loss the Bears suffered to the Lions back in week two. This one came down to Lions kicker Jake Bates hitting a 42 yard game-winning field as time expired, and the Bears had their chances down the stretch after clawing their way back from a 16-0 deficit.

But even after...

Scared, Bears fans?

Don’t be.

We’ve known it was coming. Somehow, some way. Even when the Chicago Bears couldn’t seal the deal against the Detroit Lions, the Eagles made sure fate didn’t cheat us of what we deserve.

Bears vs. Packers. Round 3. Win or go home.

We’ve seen that movie twice before in recent memory. Both times—2010 and 2013—we got our hearts broken, once with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. With the Packers fully rested heading into this Saturday night tilt and the Bears less so after playing their starters and losing to Detroit, the...

Week 18 came and went, which means the NFL playoffs are right around the corner. Over the last four seasons, the final week of the season has meant one of two things for Chicago Bears’ fans.

1. We’re gearing up for Black Monday.
2. We’re looking forward to the offseason, where things are actually fun.

This year, things are finally different. The last few weeks have been hectic. The Bears both clinched a playoff spot and won the NFC North without actually playing in the game that decided it. In Week 17, they clinched the division on a Saturday Night...

That was a frustrating game for the Chicago Bears and a frustrating close to their 2025 regular season.

The Bears played uninspired football for three quarters, while the Detroit Lions played with an edge all afternoon. When Chicago finally woke up, they tied the game at 16, but they didn’t have enough to finish.

The Bears lost, 19-16, in a game they needed to secure the two seed in the NFC. Luckily for them, the Philadelphia Eagles also lost, which gifted the Bears the second seed.

“They fought their tails off, but came up short,” head coach Ben Johnson said...

Was it the offense? Or the defense? Coaching or players? Makes no difference; these Chicago Bears did not appear ready for playoff football against the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field, finishing the 2025 regular season with a 2-4 divisional record and losing the last two games, sputtering to a discouraging finish as the playoffs near.

Let’s take a look at my notes from this defeat.

Offense:

• The run game looked good early and then not good enough shortly after. However, I would have liked to see more of the run game mixed in throughout the contest. No, I...

The 2025 regular season is officially over for the Chicago Bears after a dreadful loss to the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field, finishing 11-6 on the season.

Before we get into this week’s Windy City Honor awards, I think it’s worth noting how pleasantly surprising and exciting this season was. After going 5-12 last season, most of us fans had low expectations for this team. A lot of us would have been content with a winning record and assurance that Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams were the Bears’ head coach-quarterback pairing for the foreseeable future. We got that and so...

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARSSSSSS

Bears lose to Lions, finish regular season 11-6

Of course, it had to end this way. In a season full of last-second finishes, the Bears logged one more Sunday at Soldier Field.

Chicago Bears’ 2026 opponents are set. Here’s who they will play

With the NFL regular season wrapping up Sunday, the Chicago Bears’ 2026 opponents are set. Dates and times won’t be announced until May, but the Bears already know who they will be playing at home and on the road.

Bears lose on walk-off field goal to the Lions, 19-16

As has been...

The NFL has announced the schedule for the first round of the playoffs, and just as they’ve done in previous years, Wildcard Weekend will extend to Monday Night Football.

Only the two top seeds in each Conference, the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC and the Denver Broncos in the AFC, will receive a first-round bye. All the other playoff teams will be playing, and after the games, the lowest remaining seed in each Conference will travel to play the top seed.

Here’s the schedule; all times Central.

Saturday, January 10

3:30 p.m. – 5 Los Angeles Rams at 4 Carolina...

The NFL’s Week 18 games are nearly over, and our partners at FanDuel Sportsbook have some early odds set for the Wildcard Weekend matchups. They currently have the Chicago Bears as a 1.5-point favorite over the Green Bay Packers, with the point total over/under at 47.5.

That line has already moved, and it’ll likely flip-flop all week as these two teams split two very close games earlier this season. In Week 14, the Packers won by seven, 28 to 21, as Caleb Williams’ last-second pass was intercepted in the end zone. In their Week 16 game, Williams threw a game-winning...