2025 Chicago Bears season
The NFL season|2025 season] was the Chicago Bears' 106th in the National Football League, their fourth under the leadership of general manager Ryan Poles and their first under head coach Ben Johnson. This was their first season since 1982 [Chicago Bears season|1982] without Virginia Halas McCaskey since she took over as team owner, as she died on February 6, 2025 at the age of 102.
The Bears improved on their 5–12 record from 2024 following a week 10 win against the New York Giants season|New York Giants]. With a week 13 road win over the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles season|Philadelphia Eagles], the Bears clinched their first winning season since 2018. Their 11-4 start was also their best since doing the same in that season. After a Week 16 overtime win against their longtime rival, the 2025 [Green Bay Packers season|Green Bay Packers], coupled with the Detroit Lions season|Detroit Lions] losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers season|Pittsburgh Steelers] the following day, the Bears secured their first playoff berth since 2020 as well as ending their seven-year NFC North title drought following the Packers' loss to the Baltimore Ravens season|Baltimore Ravens] in Week 17.
The Bears began their playoff run with a comeback victory over the Packers in the Wild Card round, marking their first playoff win since the 2010 season. They would later lose to the Los Angeles Rams season|Los Angeles Rams] in the divisional round in overtime. During the season, Caleb Williams broke Erik Kramer's record for the most single-season passing yards as a Bear with 3,942; the previous record was 3,838, making him the first Bear to have a 3,900-passing yard season.
Offseason
Ownership changes
, who was the oldest of George Halas' children and the principal owner of the franchise since 1983, died on February 6, 2025 at the age of 102.Staff changes
On November 29, 2024, the Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus after the team was 4–8 and in the midst of a six-game losing streak. It was the first time in franchise history the Bears fired their head coach in the middle of the season. The Bears promoted offensive coordinator Thomas Brown as interim head coach, and under Brown the team went 1–4 in their last five games to finish the year at 5–12. On January 21, 2025, the Bears hired Ben Johnson as their 18th head coach. Johnson had previously been with the Miami Dolphins from 2012 to 2018, working up the ranks as offensive assistant, assistant quarterbacks coach, tight ends coach, assistant wide receivers coach and wide receivers coach. He was then hired by the Detroit Lions in 2019 as an offensive quality control coach before moving up to tight ends coach and passing game coordinator in 2020 and 2021. He took over as offensive coordinator in 2022 under head coach Dan Campbell, and over the next three seasons, he helped make the Lions one of the best offenses in the league – they ranked in the top five in scoring in each of Johnson's three seasons, leading the league in 2024 with 564 points.On February 20, 2025, the Bears announced the full 2025 coaching staff.
Roster changes
Reserve/future contracts
The Bears signed the following players to reserve/future contracts: Maurice Alexander, Theo Benedet, Alex Cook, Chris Glaser, John Jackson, Carl Jones Jr., Jamree Kromah, Joshua Miles, Jordan Murray, Austin Reed, Ricky Stromberg, Samori Toure and Joel Wilson.Releases
Draft
| Name | Position | College | Ref. |
| Major Burns | DB | LSU Tigers football team|LSU] | |
| Xavier Carlton | DL | 2024 [California Golden Bears football team|California] | |
| Power Echols | LB | 2024 [North Carolina Tar Heels football team|North Carolina] | |
| Luke Elkin | LS | 2024 [Iowa Hawkeyes football team|Iowa] | |
| Deion Hankins | RB | 2024 [Texas State Bobcats football team|Texas State] | |
| Tysheem Johnson | DB | Oregon Ducks football team|Oregon] | |
| Jonathan Kim | K | 2024 [Michigan State Spartans football team|Michigan State] | |
| JP Richardson | WR | 2024 [TCU Horned Frogs football team|TCU] | |
| Jereme Robinson | DL | Kansas Jayhawks football team|Kansas] | |
| Jahdae Walker | WR | 2024 [Texas A&M Aggies football team|Texas A&M] |
'''Draft trades'''
Preseason
Game summaries
Week 3: at Kansas City Chiefs
Regular season
Schedule
On May 12, the NFL announced that the Bears will host their longtime rival Green Bay Packers on Saturday, December 20 as part of a Week 16 double header that will air exclusively on Fox. Later that day, the NFL announced that the Bears will travel to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Black Friday to face the Eagles in their Week 13 matchup.Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Minnesota Vikings
In their season opener against the Vikings, the Bears led 17–6 through the first three quarters thanks to a Caleb Williams rushing touchdown and a pick-six by Nahshon Wright. However, they allowed 21 unanswered points in the 4th quarter, including touchdown passes to Justin Jefferson and Aaron Jones Sr., resulting in a 24–27 defeat. With the loss, the Bears started their season 0–1 and lost their sixth straight home game against the Vikings.Week 2: at Detroit Lions
This was Ben Johnson's first visit to Detroit since he left the Lions. With the blowout loss, the Bears fell to 0–2 overall and against the NFC North.Week 3: vs. Dallas Cowboys
This was their first win under head coach Ben Johnson. With the win, the Bears improved to 1–2 and 1–0 against the NFC East.Week 4: at Las Vegas Raiders
The Bears blocked an attempted game-winning field goal by the Raiders to secure their 800th win in franchise history.Week 6: at Washington Commanders
Running back D'Andre Swift rushed for 108 yards on 14 carries and added two receptions for 67 yards, including a 55-yard catch-and-run touchdown. Kicker Jake Moody, who was activated from the Bears' practice squad, converted four of five field goal attempts, including the game-winner, as the Bears avenged their last-second loss to the Commanders from the previous season.Week 7: vs. New Orleans Saints
The Bears snapped their eight-game losing streak against the Saints, beating them for the first time since the 2008 season. This also marked the Bears first four-game win streak since 2018.Week 8: at Baltimore Ravens
With the loss, the Bears fell to 4–3 for the second year in a row.Week 9: at Cincinnati Bengals
The Bears appeared to seal the game when DJ Moore scored a 16-yard touchdown to make it 41–27 with 4:53 remaining. However, Bengals' quarterback Joe Flacco led the Bengals on a four-play touchdown drive that concluded with a 23-yard touchdown pass to tight ends Noah Fant with 1:43 left. Bengals' wide receiver Tee Higgins then caught a two-point conversion to trim the Bears' lead to 41–35. The Bengals successfully executed an onside kick that deflected off the leg of Daniel Hardy and was recovered by defensive end Joseph Ossai. With 49 seconds remaining, the Bengals took a one-point lead after Flacco threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Andrei Iosivas. On the ensuing drive, Caleb Williams connected with Colston Loveland for a 58-yard touchdown with 17 seconds left, giving Chicago a 47–42 victory and thwarting the Bengals’ comeback attempt. Williams and the Bears offense had one of their better offensive performances, accumulating 576 total yards of offense. With a comeback win, the Bears secure their fourth win over Cincinnati since 2013 and improve to their first 5–3 start since 2020.Williams became the first starting quarterback with more than one reception in a game since George Taliaferro of the 1953 Baltimore Colts.
Week 10: vs. New York Giants
Although the Giants held a 20–10 lead with 10:19 remaining, the Bears staged yet another comeback as Caleb Williams scored two touchdowns to secure the victory. With the win, the Bears improved to 6–3 for the first time since the 2018 season.Week 11: at Minnesota Vikings
Although the Vikings overcame a 16–3 fourth-quarter deficit and took a one-point lead with 50 seconds remaining, a 56-yard kickoff return by Devin Duvernay set up Cairo Santos to convert a 48-yard game-winning field goal as time expired, completing another comeback victory for Chicago.Week 12: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Although the Bears’ former rival quarterback from the Packers, Aaron Rodgers, now plays for the Steelers, the Bears didn’t face him because he was sidelined with a broken left wrist.With their 4th home win against Pittsburgh since 2001, the Bears improved to 8–3 and 2–1 against the AFC North.
Week 13: at Philadelphia Eagles
Black Friday gamesRunning backs D'Andre Swift and rookie Kyle Monangai rushed for a combined 255 yards and 2 touchdowns with Swift rushing for 125 and Monangai rushing for 130. It was the first time the Bears had two 100-yard rushers since Walter Payton and Matt Suhey in 1985. With their first win over Philadelphia since 2011, the Bears snapped a six-game losing streak against the Eagles and swept the NFC East. This also marked their first winning season since 2018.
Week 14: at Green Bay Packers
In a game-deciding play, Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon intercepted Caleb Williams’ pass in the end zone with 22 seconds remaining, leading to a Packers victory.Week 15: vs. Cleveland Browns
With the win, the Bears clinched their first double-digit win season since 2018.Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers
The Packers lost quarterback Jordan Love to a concussion after he took a helmet-to-helmet hit from Chicago’s Austin Booker in the second quarter. In a defensive battle, Green Bay built a 16–6 lead when kicker Brandon McManus kicked a 28-yard field goal with about five minutes remaining. The Bears responded by marching down the field and kicking a field goal just as the two-minute warning arrived. Chicago then recovered an onside kick, setting up a dramatic finish. Facing 4th-and-4 at the Packers' 6-yard line, Caleb Williams beat an all-out blitz and lofted a pass to a wide-open Jahdae Walker in the right corner of the end zone to force overtime. In overtime, the Packers had 4th-and-1 at the Chicago 36, but backup quarterback Malik Willis fumbled the snap. On the ensuing Bears drive, Williams connected with DJ Moore for a 46-yard touchdown, completing a comeback victory.The Bears defeated the Packers at home for the first time since 2018. With the Steelers defeating the Lions the following day, the Bears clinched their first playoff berth since the 2020 season. Next Gen Stats reported the Bears' rally against the Packers was the fifth-most improbable comeback since 2016, while Pro Football Focus graded Williams' game-winning touchdown throw as the highest-rated passing play of the season.
Week 17: at San Francisco 49ers
Following the Packers' loss to the Ravens from yesterday, the Bears clinched their first NFC North title since 2018.The Bears and 49ers engaged in a shootout, with the game decided on the final play when Caleb Williams’ last-ditch pass to Jahdae Walker fell incomplete in the end zone from San Francisco’s 2-yard line, sealing the 49ers’ victory. With the loss, the Bears dropped to 11–5 finished 5–4 on the road.
Week 18: vs. Detroit Lions
Caleb Williams threw for 212 yards, giving him 3,942 on the season and surpassing Erik Kramer’s franchise record of 3,838 set in 1995. Chicago remains the only NFL team without a 4,000-yard passer. Kevin Byard recorded his league-leading seventh interception.Despite the loss, the Eagles loss to the Commanders allowed the Bears to remain the NFC’s second seed, setting up a Wild Card Round matchup against their division rival Green Bay Packers.