Chicago Bears face tough 2025 season according to strength of schedule

The Chicago Bears face one of the toughest schedules of the entire NFL in 2025, which will complicate their efforts to live up to their sky-high expectations.

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Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis recently published his strength of schedule projections for the 2025 NFL season, based on Vegas forecasted win totals for each team, and the results aren't encouraging for fans of the Chicago Bears.

The Bears are set to have the sixth hardest schedule, just ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs.

This could be a problem for the Chicago Bears because, fair or not, they are expected to win a lot of games in 2025. After the coaching upgrades and the infusion of talent in free agency and the NFL draft, fans and analysts alike expect quarterback Caleb Williams to take a major leap in his development and lead the Bears to their first winning season since 2018.

But by facing one of the toughest schedules in the league, there's a possible future where the Bears play very well but still end up at the bottom of the NFC North. While it's not a worst-case scenario, no one in the franchise would be satisfied with another season of moral victories. Just like the fans, the players expect to win, too.

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Conversely, a strong schedule could be a blessing in disguise. If the Bears live up to the hype, then they should be able to beat even some of the title contenders they're slated to face in 2025. That could get them to anywhere between 9 and 11 wins if they take care of business against weaker opponents.

In that scenario, they'll be one of the most battle-tested teams in the NFL, and no one can accuse them of beating up on a creampuff schedule.

For now, the only thing the Bears can do is control what they can control, and that means installing the new offense and defense in OTAs and training camp. The regular season will come eventually, and they'll need to be at their very best to avoid another slow start to the season.

Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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