Bears' 2021 schedule looks tough
With the 2020 regular season in the books, NFL teams across the league now know the opponents they will face in the 2021 regular season. There is one caveat, though. The NFL still is leaving open the option to add a 17th regular season game.
Adding a 17th regular season game has been talked about frequently in recent years. The financial losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has provided the league all the more incentive to add a 17th game in hopes of offsetting some of those losses.
In December, league owners approved scheduling procedures should the league add a 17th game, although they did not officially approve a 17th game yet. Such approval could come in the next weeks or months. If it were to happen, it would certainly happen prior to the NFL's 2021 schedule release in April or May.
The 17th game would be an extra inter-conference matchup: NFC vs. AFC, based on division standings from the previous season.
For now, we know who the Bears will play in 16 of their regular season games in 2021. In addition to their six NFC North games, they will face the entire AFC North and NFC West.
By finishing second in the NFC North in 2020, they will face the second-place finishers in the NFC East (New York Giants) and the NFC South (Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
Bears' 2021 opponents
Home: Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions.
Away: Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions.
The 17th game, if added, would be against an AFC team that finished second in its division. That would leave either the Las Vegas Raiders, the Miami Dolphins or the Indianapolis Colts.
The list includes seven playoff teams. Should fans be allowed back in Soldier Field next season, they would get to see the likes of Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray play in Chicago.
Road trips to Seattle and Pittsburgh are particularly tough places to play when fans are in the stands. The Bears would also make their first trip to the Rams' SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., the $5 billion stadium opened just outside Los Angeles this season.