The Packers-Bears matchup in Week 5 will no longer be part of FOX’s late-afternoon showcase. The NFL has flexed the game at Lambeau Field from the 3:25 PM Central “Game of the Week” slot to a 12:00 Noon Central kickoff.
That change comes after the early-season picture shifted quickly. Green Bay entered the year with the game lined up as one of the network’s priorities after the two teams split the 2025 regular-season series and then added a thriller in the Wild Card round. But through three weeks, the Packers are 1-2, with their only win coming in overtime against the New York Jets, and Chicago still won’t have Caleb Williams for a few more weeks as he continues to recover from a hamstring strain.
With the Packers-Bears game moved earlier, FOX will now use 49ers-Seahawks as its more attractive late-afternoon national window.
The flex also changes the spotlight on Green Bay’s new “Rivalries” uniforms. The Packers are set to wear them for the first time in this game, while the Bears will unveil theirs in the Christmas Day rematch at Soldier Field.
There’s another wrinkle here, too: this means both Packers-Bears games will kick off at Noon Central only the second time in more than 20 years. The holiday rematch will still air nationally, and the same unusual setup also happened in 2024, though that Week 18 kickoff wasn’t finalized until the end of the season. Before that, the last time it happened was 2004, which also featured a season-ending meeting.
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Packers Fans Face A Frustrating Week 4 TV Problem
The Packers early Week 4 matchup with the Buccaneers comes with an extra wrinkle for fans hoping to watch it the old-fashioned way. FOX is carrying the game, but the broadcast is limited to local TV in Wisconsin, Michigan and parts of Florida, leaving plenty of Packers backers outside those areas scrambling for another way in.
For many viewers, that means turning to NFL Sunday Ticket or finding a bar or restaurant package to catch the game live. FOX will send Jonathan Vilma and Chris Myers to call it, while other booth assignments shift to different games around the league, but the bigger story for Packers fans is simply whether they can find the screen in time. [Read more 🡒]
Packers-Bears Just Lost The Spotlight At Lambeau
The league has pushed the Packers-Bears Week 5 meeting at Lambeau Field into a noon kickoff, moving the rivalry out of its original late-afternoon slot. What was set for 3:25 p.m. Central will now start at 12 p.m., a shift tied to Green Bays slow start and Chicagos quarterback injury, with FOX opting to carry 49ers-Seahawks in the later window instead.
For Green Bay, the timing change still leaves a notable bit of pageantry intact. The Packers are set to debut their new Rivalries uniforms in the game, giving one of the NFLs oldest matchups a fresh look even if it no longer has the spotlight that originally came with the later kickoff. [Read more 🡒]
Packers O-Line Issues Forced Gutekunst To Finally Act
After the loss to the Atlanta Falcons, Brian Gutekunst finally said out loud what has been obvious for weeks: the Packers offensive line was in trouble. Injuries and uneven play up front have helped drag down the run game and left Jordan Love taking too many hits, turning a preseason concern into a real in-season problem for Green Bay.
Gutekunsts first move was to bring in veteran guard Laken Tomlinson from the Dallas Cowboys practice squad, a clear sign the Packers are trying to patch things before the damage gets worse. Whether one addition is enough to stabilize a line that has already been through so much is still the bigger question hanging over the offense. [Read more 🡒]