The Chicago Bears are coming off one of the more magical seasons in franchise history. While it ended in the NFC Divisional Round, what Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson did together was nothing short of incredible.
They went 11-6, winning the NFC North, and shocking the NFL world with some of the most incredible plays in NFL history from Williams.
However, for the 2026 season, ESPN’s Mike Clay gave the Bears a bleak projection in the NFC North that, unfortunately, has some truth to it.
Bears receive bleak NFC North projection from ESPN analyst
ESPN shared analysis on all of the NFC North teams, and Clay handed out win projections for every team in the division.
The Detroit Lions came in first place by a wide margin with 12 projected wins, while the Green Bay Packers were second with 9.5 projected wins. The Bears, after winning the division in 2025, are projected to have 9.3 wins and a third-place finish.
Clay’s projection would be an incredibly disappointing outcome for the Bears. Going from NFC North winners to third place in one season would be a tough fall for Chicago to undergo in one year.
However, there is some truth to this projection for one simple, unfortunate reason: the Bears have the “hardest schedule in NFL,” according to ESPN.
The Bears face the Lions and Packers twice, which will be tough matchups. The Minnesota Vikings aren’t gimme’s either.
Also going up against the Bears this season are the Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars, Buffalo Bills, and Carolina Panthers, among playoff teams.
The Bears do face the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins, but the New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are far from easy matchups for the Bears.
It’s a tough schedule for the Bears, and coming off such an incredible 2025 season, some regression wouldn’t be that unrealistic.
This might be a bleak projection from Clay, but with the hardest schedule in the league, and regression very much possible, this projection might have some truth to it. Chicago’s 2026 season might not be as great as its 2025 season.