Bears open season on 'Sunday Night Football' vs. Rams at SoFi Stadium
By Sean Hammond
The NFL released its full schedule for the 2021 season Wednesday night, and the Bears' schedule features several games with a national audience.
That includes a Sunday Night Football matchup at the Los Angeles Rams in Week 1 and a Thanksgiving Day game at Detroit.
For the first time, the NFL will play 17 regular-season games. The schedule will begin the same week in September as it has in recent years, but the extra week will be tacked on in January, pushing the postseason schedule one week later.
Chicago Bears 2021 schedule
Preseason
Week 1: vs. Miami Dolphins, noon, Saturday, Aug. 14
Week 2: vs. Buffalo Bills, noon, Saturday, Aug. 21
Week 3: at Tennessee Titans, 6 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 28
Regular season
Week 1: at Los Angeles Rams, 7:20 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 12, NBC (Sunday Night Football)
Week 2: vs. Cincinnati Bengals, noon, Sunday, Sept. 19
Week 3: at Cleveland Browns, noon, Sunday, Sept. 26
Week 4: vs. Detroit Lions, noon, Sunday, Oct. 3
Week 5: at Las Vegas Raiders, 3:05 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 10
Week 6: vs. Green Bay Packers, noon, Sunday, Oct. 17
Week 7: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 3:25 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 24
Week 8: vs. San Francisco 49ers, noon, Sunday, Oct. 31
Week 9: at Pittsburgh Steelers, 7:15 p.m., Monday, Nov. 8, ESPN (Monday Night Football)
Week 10: BYE
Week 11: vs. Baltimore Ravens, noon Sunday, Nov. 21
Week 12: at Detroit Lions, 11:30 a.m. Nov. 25 (Thanksgiving Day)
Week 13: vs. Arizona Cardinals, noon, Sunday, Dec. 5
Week 14: at Green Bay Packers, 7:20 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 12, NBC (Sunday Night Football)
Week 15: vs. Minnesota Vikings, 7:15 p.m., Monday, Dec. 20, ESPN (Monday Night Football)
Week 16: at Seattle Seahawks, 3:05 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 26
Week 17: vs. New York Giants, noon, Sunday, Jan. 2
Week 18: at Minnesota Vikings, noon, Sunday, Jan. 9
Bears in prime time
This year's Bears slate includes five national TV games: two on Sunday Night Football, two on Monday Night Football and a Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit.
In addition to the opener against the Rams, the Bears will play at Green Bay on Sunday Night Football on Dec. 12. For Monday night games, they will square off at Pittsburgh on Nov. 8 and vs. Minnesota on Dec. 20 at Soldier Field.
The Bears will be facing the Rams for the fourth consecutive season in prime time. The two teams squared off on Sunday Night Football in 2018 and 2019, as well as on Monday Night Football in 2020.
The Bears will be playing Detroit on Thanksgiving Day for the third time in four seasons.
Fans likely to return to Soldier Field
The Bears are working with local officials to return fans to Soldier Field. Single-game tickets go on sale at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Ticket limits and prices will vary by game and demand-based pricing will be used.
The White Sox and Cubs already are hosting fans outdoors at baseball games. Last week, the Blackhawks and Bulls welcomed fans back to the United Center. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said she hopes to have the city "fully open" by July 4 weekend.
"The Bears are working closely with city, state and public health officials to safely welcome fans back to Soldier Field for the 2021 season," the team said in a news release. "All city, state and league COVID-19 safety policies will be strictly enforced at Bears home games this season."