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Lucky Rebel Sportsbook · NFL · NFC North
Chicago Bears
Odds
Next game odds, playoff outlook, schedule and Super Bowl history.
Chicago went from worst to first in 2025. Ben Johnson’s first season produced an NFC North title and a Wild Card win over Green Bay, and Caleb Williams set a franchise single-season passing record. The breakout was real. The question is whether it holds.
Johnson is preaching against complacency, telling his team they are back at square one. The offense scored the third-most points in franchise history and the staff was raided for two coordinators. The defense is the side that needs work, and regression is the word nobody in Chicago wants to hear.
Lucky Rebel’s Editor Top Pick
Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson are the engine. In year two together, with the same play-caller for the first time in Williams’s career, the offense should keep climbing. Williams set a franchise passing record and Johnson’s scheme produced explosive plays at one of the highest rates in the league. The ceiling is high. The risk is a defense that lagged the offense and the league’s long history of teams slipping after a breakout.
Bears next game odds
Chicago Bears at Carolina Panthers · 9/13/26 · 1:00 PM ET
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears | -2.5 (-110) | -135 | O 44.5 (-110) |
| Carolina Panthers | +2.5 (-110) | +115 | U 44.5 (-110) |
All Bears vs Panthers markets →
Bears to make the playoffs
| Market | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears to make the playoffs | +100 | -130 |
Our call: it’s a coin flip, and we lean no. At even money to make the playoffs and -130 to miss, the board calls this almost a toss-up, and we lean toward missing. The talent and the Johnson-Williams pairing are real, but the Bears have not followed a playoff berth with another in twenty years, the defense has questions, and Johnson himself keeps warning about regression. The upside is there; the history says be cautious.
Ben Johnson in year two
Johnson turned the Bears around in a single season, winning the division and a playoff game while developing Caleb Williams. His staff was good enough that two assistants left to coordinate elsewhere within a year. He calls the offense and sets the standard.
His message all offseason has been about avoiding complacency, treating 2025 as meaningless and starting over. That mindset is the antidote to the regression that has tripped up Chicago after past success.
An offense-first staff and a defense to settle
Johnson runs the offense, and the continuity of scheme into Williams’s second year in the system is the biggest reason for optimism. The Bears built the unit into one of the league’s most explosive and finished with the fewest giveaways in football.
The defense is the side with questions. Chicago leaned its offseason resources toward the offense, and the front in particular needs to prove it can get after the quarterback. How that group performs will decide whether the Bears build on 2025 or slide back.
The Bears playing staff
Caleb Williams is the centerpiece, coming off a record-setting season with weapons around him including tight end Colston Loveland. The offense is the identity, and the second year in Johnson’s system should sharpen the passing game Johnson openly wants to improve.
On defense, Montez Sweat and cornerback Jaylon Johnson are the anchors of a unit that needs more consistency. The offense will keep Chicago in games. Whether the defense holds up its end is the difference between a return trip to January and the regression everyone is bracing for.
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