The NFL has moved the Packers-Bears clash in Week 5 out of the late afternoon spotlight and into a Noon Central kickoff at Lambeau Field.
That game had originally been set for FOX’s 3:25 PM Central “Game of the Week” slot after the league released its 2026 regular season schedule. It was one of the network’s priority matchups, with Green Bay hosting Chicago in the first meeting of the season between the NFL’s oldest rivals.
But the appeal has shifted over the first three weeks. Green Bay has opened 1-2, and its only win came in overtime against the New York Jets. Chicago, meanwhile, will be without starting quarterback Caleb Williams for a few more weeks as he continues to recover from a hamstring strain.
With that, the league has flexed Packers-Bears out of the late window and into the early afternoon. FOX will now carry 49ers-Seahawks in the later national slot.
The time change also pushes the Packers’ new “Rivalries” uniforms into a much smaller audience. Green Bay is scheduled to wear them for the first time in this game, while Chicago will debut its version in the Christmas Day rematch at Soldier Field.
There’s another wrinkle here, too: this is only the second time in more than 20 years that both Packers-Bears meetings will kick off at Noon Central. The holiday rematch will still be shown nationally, but the unusual scheduling pattern has only happened before in 2024 - when the Week 18 time slot wasn’t locked in until the end of the season - and before that not since 2004, which also featured a season-ending matchup.
In Other News...
Ryan Poles Just Changed The Bears Pass Rush Debate
The Bears spent the 2026 offseason reshaping the interior of their defensive line, adding several defensive tackles while leaving the edge group untouched and sending Gervon Dexter to Atlanta. Through three games, the early returns have made the front look more complete than the roster construction might have suggested, with Chicago piling up 52 quarterback pressures and seven sacks while ranking 10th in the NFL in pressure rate.
Montez Sweat and Dayo Odeyingbo have carried much of the load on the outside, and Austin Booker has also shown encouraging progress as the rotation has settled in. It leaves Ryan Poles in an interesting spot: the pass rush debate that looked like a clear offseason priority has shifted into a more nuanced conversation about whether the Bears have enough at edge, or whether the mix they assembled can keep producing once teams adjust. [Read more 🡒]
Bears Win Couldnt Hide A Problem Fans Can Already See
A 27-7 win over the Eagles should have left the Bears feeling pretty good about themselves, and in plenty of ways it did. But even a comfortable result could not fully mask the way some individual performances have begun to settle in, especially on a roster trying to sort out which pieces can be trusted as the season opens up. For a team still building its identity, the early weeks have already started to separate the players rising with the moment from the ones sliding the other direction.
Braxton Jones has had a rough stretch at left tackle, and Theo Benedet has not seized the chance to steady that spot when called upon. Elsewhere, Rome Odunze, Kyle Monangai and Neville Gallimore have also fallen short of expectations through the first three weeks, leaving the Bears with more to sort through than a single win can fix. The scoreboard said one thing against Philadelphia, but the film is already asking tougher questions about where this team is getting dependable production. [Read more 🡒]
Former Bears Receiver Back In The Mix As 49ers Injuries Mount
As injuries continue to chip away at the San Francisco 49ers wide receiver room, the team is turning back to a familiar name for help. Dante Pettis is expected to rejoin the 49ers practice squad after working out with the club and awaiting a physical, a move that gives them another experienced option as they try to steady a position group that has been stretched thin.
Pettis was originally drafted by San Francisco in 2018, and his return would add a bit of roster familiarity at a time when the 49ers need bodies more than they need introductions. He has moved on to multiple other NFL teams since then, but the receiver depth issue in San Francisco has created an opening for a player who knows the system and can at least provide another layer of insurance while the injuries sort themselves out. [Read more 🡒]