In Week 1 of the 2025 NFL Season, the Chicago Bears are hosting the Minnesota Vikings in a very early test for the new and notable Bears era. The Bears really seemed to get serious this offseason, as they got with the program on the offensive side of the ball, hiring the hottest and most desired head coaching name in Ben Johnson.
Another huge bonus of being able to hire Johnson is that the Detroit Lions no longer have him, so you have to figure that the NFC North got that much closer with the addition of the sharp offensive mind to Chicago.
But the Bears were really only getting started, as they totally rebuilt their offensive line with Jonah Jackson, Joe Thuney, and Drew Dalman. GM Ryan Poles also further addressed the defensive line and added some nice talent in the 2025 NFL Draft with his selections of Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III.
Bears immediately put to a major test
It seems like the NFL is also kind of on the same page here, as the Chicago Bears have immediately been thrown into primetime action in Week 1, hosting the Minnesota Vikings, and while this is going to be a huge test for the new-look Bears, I bet they end up being favored in this game.
The Vikings are likely set to start JJ McCarthy, who is essentially a rookie - he missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury and has never played in regular season action. I do believe people are overrating the Vikings a bit, as McCarthy is absolutely going to play like a rookie many times during the season.
But when you look at just how talented Minnesota's roster is, it would not be a shock if McCarthy had similar to success to what Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix did during their rookie campaigns in 2024. The Chicago Bears do have a realistic path to a decisive Week 1 victory if this offense ends up being competent, and it'll be interesting to see what kind of product they put on the field, as each team and the coaches are very, very familiar with each other.