Jan. 10, 2026, 1:24 p.m. CT
The Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers are set to face off in a Wild Card Weekend playoff game.Green Bay will be without star defensive player Micah Parsons, who is out for the season with an injury.The Bears’ potential advantages include playing at home and facing a Packers team with other key injuries, including to quarterback Jordan Love.Green Bay’s playoff experience and Chicago’s recent struggles could be deciding factors in the matchup.
The Chicago Bears are getting set for their big Wild Card Weekend matchup against the Green Bay Packers. It has been a while since they’ve played in the playoffs, and it’s been even longer since they played their fiercest rival in a postseason matchup.
The Bears and Packers split their season series this year, with each team winning on the final play of the game. In the Caleb Williams era, the two teams are deadlocked 2-2. A game where the winner goes to the divisional round and the loser goes home seems like a great tiebreaker.
Every team comes into this time of year with injuries. Green Bay, however, has the best player in the matchup out for the season as Micah Parsons won’t be back until next year. This gives Chicago an advantage, as Williams won’t have the best defensive player in the NFL chasing after him all game.
Still, this game can go either way. There is a reason that their regular-season series went the way that it did. Each team wants to win, and they each did on their home turf. What is going to happen this time around? It’s hard to project. These are the reasons the Bears will win and the reasons they won’t.
The Bears are a better team than the Packers right now. They have both dealt with injuries, but Green Bay has had them to more consequential players than Chicago. The Micah Parsons injury could be game-breaking. Not only is he one of the three best pass rushers in the NFL, but he is also a defender who makes an impact all over the field. Everyone on the Bears’ offense has it just a bit easier without him chasing after Caleb Williams.
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Jordan Love is going to play for the Packers, but he has hardly played since his injury against the Bears. Is he 100 percent? Well, nobody actually is at this time of year, but only time will tell based on his play on Saturday night. If he’s compromised in any way, the Bears’ defense will have a slight advantage.
Chicago has a ton of pressure on them to win because of the opponent. However, in the grand scheme of things, there is a lot more pressure on Green Bay, which has been a playoff team for a few years now. After losing four straight going into the playoffs, they are a bit more fragile, which is something the Bears can take advantage of.
Each team has an elite coach, but this is Ben Johnson’s chance to make his mark as a rookie head coach. He will have his guys more than prepared. With the game being played at Soldier Field in front of a hungry Bears crowd, they have everything they need to get it done.
Why the Bears won’t win
The Packers have a more experienced head coach, quarterback, and group of veterans on both sides of the football. That alone is a reason to think they could win the game. There is a lot more evidence that Green Bay will live up to the level of play that is needed to move on.
The Bears have no proof that they can get it done with the season on the line. They have lost their last two games, and there was a lot on the line in both of them. It would be better if they had some momentum going into the postseason.
A lot of Chicago’s wins in 2025 came in an unsustainable way, especially if it were the playoffs. You can’t go down early in every game and expect to make a two-minute comeback. That ability allowed them to be a great team instead of a good team, but it is a magic that will run out eventually. They must play a full 60 minutes to advance in the playoffs, and they have yet to do that against a good team.
The defense is also very much a “bend, don’t break” unit. This will lead to issues against the Packers, unless they find a way to create multiple turnovers in the meantime. Without that takeaway success, they don’t have a great chance to win.
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