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NFL sets key dates for Bears, league’s upcoming season

The Feb. 14 Super Bowl in Los Angeles and April 29-May 1 draft in Washington, D.C., were previously set. The NFL announced other key dates for the upcoming season Tuesday.

Bears and Ryan Poles Poised to Benefit From a Collapsing NFC North

SI crap on a slow news day. Read at your own SI tolerance level.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Von Miller now regrets choosing Commanders over Seahawks

Hindsight is a hell of a drug.

2027 free agent negotiating window will open a day after the Combine ends...

The Chicago Bears will enter the 2026 season with a little more uncertainty on the offensive line than they may have originally thought.

Following the surprising retirement of Pro Bowl center Drew Dalman in March, the Bears looked to retool up front by drafting Iowa center Logan Jones, while also trading for New England Patriots center Garrett Bradbury.

Bradbury looks to be a possible short term answer, with Jones the center of the future if all goes to plan. The team also signed undrafted free agent center Jaren Kump out of Utah.

The left tackle position also remains somewhat of...

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Bears fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

The 2025 season saw the Chicago Bears finish with their first winning record since 2018, and with team success came individual notoriety as four players made the Pro Bowl: Guard Joe Thuney, center Drew Dalman, safety Kevin Byard III, and corner Nahshon Wright.

Four of those players no longer play in the Windy City, so if the Bears can keep the...

As Bears training camp approaches, it’s natural to wonder how their roster fares compared to the rest of the league going into the 2026-27 NFL season. On paper, there are certain positions on Chicago’s roster that look stronger than others.

That’s obviously going to be the case for every team, but it remains to be seen if the Bears can maximize their strengths and negate their weaknesses to win the NFC North again this season. If they do so, it would be the first time Chicago has finished as division champions in back-to-back seasons since the 2005 and 2006 campaigns....

Considering that Ben Johnson’s 2025 offense didn’t feature one wide receiver over the others, I went back and forth on having one appear on this year’s 10 Most Important Chicago Bears list. But Luther Burden III has a chance to be really special, so I had to include him.

At his NFL Combine, he only did the 40-yard dash and positional drills, so he didn’t qualify for an overall RAS score, but watching him play, I think it’s safe to assume his agility testing would have all been charted in the green. He definitely plays to his 4.41 forty, but...

With Chicago’s offense as strong as it’s been in decades, if not longer, it got me thinking about the possibility of any franchise records being broken in 2026. Let’s take a look at which ones might come down this season on both sides of the ball, starting with the offense.

Passing

Passing Yards in a Season: C. Williams – 3,942 (2025)

Passing TD in a Season: E. Kramer – 29 (1995)

Passer Rating in a Season: J. McCown – 109.0 (2013)

Completion Percentage in a Season: M. Trubisky – 67.0% (2020)

I think Caleb will break the first two...

Den picture caption: SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – JULY 06: Chicago Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze fulfills his role as the adidas Stadium Captain with the adidas Trionda match ball before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 match between USA and Belgium at Seattle Stadium on July 06, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Sarah Stier – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

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Assessing ESPN’s evaluation of the Chicago Bears roster

ESPN ranked every roster, assessing each team’s starting lineup, strengths and weaknesses, X factors and a nonstarter. With all those factors considered, the Bears finished at...

Last year, the Chicago Bears got only 7 regular-season games from Jaylon Johnson (and both postseason games), but I don’t think he was 100% in any of them. His offseason was hampered by a groin injury, and then during his first game (week 2 vs. the Lions), he suffered a different groin injury, this one requiring core muscle surgery. He came off injured reserve two months later, but was eased back into the lineup, playing less than 70% of the defensive reps the remainder of the season. The Bears used him a bit more in the playoffs (83%), but he...

It’s time to kick off our next yearly off-season series, where we look at interesting training camp battles that could develop throughout July and August. As always, we will unveil these throughout July as we inch closer to the players reporting to training camp. Let’s kick it off on the defensive side of the ball at linebacker, with TJ Edwards and D’Marco Jackson.

The Bears have done quite a heavy facelift to their linebacker room over the last couple of years. They have added quite a few new faces to the room, and at the top of the list is...

Of all the professional sports leagues in the country, the NFL boasts one of the highest rates of turnover among playoff teams each year. Each year, we see teams go from worst to first. While many would make the argument that the Los Angeles Rams are the league’s most improved team (on paper), we’ll focus on teams that missed the playoffs in 2025 and fit the mold for that cinderella story in 2026, much like the Chicago Bears experienced just a season ago. Now that the Bears aren’t headlining the offseason winners bracket, it’s time for fans to enjoy taking...

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

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Caleb Williams sends a signed jersey to Chicago native Pope Leo

Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has sent a signed jersey to Pope Leo XIV. Leo, born as Robert Francis Prevost, is a Chicago native. And, given that there’s only one NFL team in town, it’s safe to say he’s a Bears fan.

Bears QB Caleb Williams sends Pope Leo an autographed jersey, which could be a sneak peek of rivalry uniform

Williams send the gift via Ambassador Brian Burch for Fourth of July.

[**Fox broadcaster Mark Schlereth: Bears’ Caleb Williams ‘not a good quarterback” despite...

Despite any expectations fans may have about Grady Jarrett, the Chicago Bears’ lack of significant movement at the position suggests they still expect him to be a difference-maker in the middle of the defense. Oh, sure, they brought in Neville Gallimore on a two-year, $10 million deal, but they needed a replacement for Andrew Billings. Gervon Dexter Sr. is back and is heading into his contract year, but Jarrett has nearly a $19 million cap hit in 2026, so they need him to be the guy they thought they were signing last offseason.

Jarrett’s first year in Chicago wasn’t memorable,...