5 takeaways from Bears' 2024 schedule, including key stretch, unusual division slate

5 takeaways from Bears' 2024 schedule, including key stretch, unusual division slate originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

Caleb Williams and the Bears' path in 2024 is set after the NFL released the schedule Wednesday.

The fast-improving Bears are slated to have three primetime games as well as standalone games on Thanksgiving and in London.

The Bears' schedule came with a few notable quirks, including the placement of the NFC North games and the projected difficulty of the first 10 games versus the final seven.

Here are five key takeaways from the Bears' 2024 schedule:

Late division slate

The Bears don't play an NFC North foe until Week 11 when Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers visit Soldier Field in mid-November.

While each of the other NFC North teams gets two division games prior to Week 11, all six of the Bears' division games come in the final eight. That includes a Thanksgiving Day game against the Lions in Detroit and a Monday night tilt with the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minnesota in Week 15.

A backloaded division slate will allow the Bears to keep their NFC North title goals in front of them, even if they get off to a slow start.

However, that could also put a heavy burden on Williams and a young, relatively unproven roster to be healthy and peak against a rough finishing schedule that also includes a trip to San Francisco to face the 49ers.

Soft launch

Many expected the Caleb Wiliams era to start with a primetime show in Week 1, but the NFL opted to give the Bears and their rookie quarterback a less pressure-packed entrance.

The Bears will host second-year quarterback Will Levis and the Tennessee Titans in Week 1. The Titans are in the first year of a rebuilding project under new head coach Brian Callahan after the dismissal of Mike Vrabel in the offseason.

While the Titans added wide receiver Calvin Ridley and cornerback L'Jarius Sneed in the offseason, they are still expected to be among the NFL's bottom-feeders in 2024.

The opener against the Titans should be a cushy debut for Williams before a Week 2 date with the Houston Texans on "Sunday Night Football."

All in all, the Bears' first five games should give the No. 1 overall pick a nice mix of defense -- both in quality and scheme -- to open his NFL career.

After the Week 2 date with the Texans, the Bears will visit the Indianapolis Colts before hosting the Los Angeles Rams and Carolina Panthers.

According to NFL analytics guru Warren Sharp, the Bears are projected to have the easiest schedule in the first 10 games based on forecasted win totals.

Outside of the Texans and Rams, the Bears don't face a team that has an OVER/UNDER higher than 8.5 in their first 10 games.

Early bye week

The Bears have had late byes in each of the first two years of the Eberflus era, but their break comes earlier in 2024.

With a Week 6 trip to London to face the Jacksonville Jaguars on the slate, the Bears opted to take their bye in Week 7. NFL teams that travel overseas have the option of taking the bye the following week or not.

An early bye week could end up being vital for the Bears as they look to get Williams off the developmental launching pad.

After facing the Jaguars, the Bears will have 10 days to review the first six games of Williams' career and begin fine-tuning things for the final 11 games.

In each of the past two seasons, the Bears have used the mini-bye week after an early Thursday night game to self-scout and alter their plans of attack on each side of the ball. That self-scouting led to quarterback Justin Fields's 2022 rushing explosion.

This year they get the full bye week for that self-scout.

Six games is a good sample size for the Bears to get a feel for where Williams is in his development, what is working offensively, and what needs to change to maximize the rookie for the rest of the season.

It could pay dividends when they exit the bye week and face a critical three-game section of the schedule.

Key stretch

We discussed earlier how the Bears' final eight games include six NFC North matchups and a visit to San Francisco.

With that gauntlet starting in Week 11, the Bears' three-game stretch following the bye week is critical.

They'll travel to Washington, D.C., to face the Commanders before heading to Arizona for a tilt with the rebuilding Cardinals. Following back-to-back road games, the Bears return to Soldier Field for a date with the New England Patriots.

The Bears will have the quarterback advantage in two of these games and could have it in all three, depending on how Kyler Murray looks in Year 2 post-knee surgery. They should also have the edge on the defensive side of the ball in at least two of the contests (the Patriots' defense was a top-10 unit when fully healthy in 2023).

The Commanders, Cardinals, and Patriots are not expected to be playoff contenders. The Commanders will be breaking in a rookie quarterback in Jayden Daniels, while the Patriots will either have journeyman Jacoby Brissett or rookie Drake Maye under center.

If the Bears want to play meaningful football in December and potentially January, cleaning up during this three-game stretch is vital with the finishing gauntlet looming.

Another Lambeau finish

Lambeau Field has been a house of horrors for the Bears for almost 20 years.

After winning four straight games at Lambeau from 2004-2007, the Bears have gone 2-14 in their last 16 trips up north.

The Bears haven't beaten the Packers since 2018, when they won at Soldier Field. Their last win at Lambeau was in 2015.

Last season, the Bears' season-ending loss to the Packers at Lambeau Field likely served as the easy answer to questions about the future of Fields and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy.

The Bears will enter the 2024 season with playoff expectations despite having a rookie quarterback. Their win total stands at 8.5 right now. Nine wins might be enough for a wild-card spot. Ten will definitely punch the ticket in a weak NFC.

Given the tough end to the schedule, there's a good chance the Bears will need to win the season finale at Lambeau to secure a postseason bid.

No better time to break a nine-year drought than with a playoff spot on the line.

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