Now that a 17-game regular season has been approved, the Raiders have officially been added to the Bears’ schedule. All NFC teams are on the road for the added game, which means the Bears will travel to Las Vegas for the very first time.
How the NFL determined the schedule for the 17th game
Each year, game No. 17 will be an interconference matchup determined by a rotating divisional matchup and the divisional standings from the prior year. To simplify, this year, the NFC North will face off against the AFC West, with each 2020 first place team playing each other, the second place finishers playing each other, and so on and so forth. This means that the Bears, who finished second in the NFC North, will play the Raiders, who finished second in the AFC West.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Bears vs. Raiders history
This will be the 16th meeting between the Bears and the Raiders, with Las Vegas leading the series 8-7. The two teams squared off last in 2019 when the Raiders won 24-21 in London. This 17th game will also mark the second time Khalil Mack plays against his former team. In 2019, he was held without a sack, but registered three tackles and recovered one fumble.
The full schedule has not been released, so we don’t know exactly when in the season the Bears will travel to Las Vegas.
Related: NFL expands regular season to 17 games per team
NFL
Click here to subscribe to the Under Center Podcast for free.