The Chicago Bears will face their toughest test of the season when they take on the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles on Black Friday.
The Bears and Eagles square off at 2 p.m. Friday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. It’s the only NFL game on the schedule Friday.
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Here’s what to know about the Week 13 matchup, including how to watch it.
Who are the Bears playing?
The Bears (8-3) take on the Eagles (8-3) in a matchup of two of the NFC’s best teams. They’re currently tied for the second-best record in the conference behind the Los Angeles Rams (9-2).
The Bears and Eagles haven’t played since 2022. Philadelphia has won six consecutive games in the series, including the infamous “double doink” playoff matchup in January 2019. The Bears last beat the Eagles in 2011.
Have the Bears played on Black Friday before?
The NFL owns Thanksgiving from a sports-viewing perspective, and once again the league has three games on Thursday this year.
Beginning in 2023, the NFL introduced a standalone Black Friday afternoon game.
Prime Video took over as the broadcast partner for “Thursday Night Football” in 2022, but it doesn’t broadcast any of the three Thanksgiving games. Instead, it has exclusive broadcasting rights to the Black Friday game.
This will be the NFL’s third Black Friday game. The Bears never have played on Black Friday, although they have an extensive history of playing on Thanksgiving. They are 20-16-2 in 38 Thanksgiving games. That includes last year’s baffling loss in Detroit, which proved to be former coach Matt Eberflus’ final game.
Bears coach Matt Eberflus watches quarterback Caleb Williams (18) take a snap in the second quarter against the Lions at Ford Field on Nov. 28, 2024, in Detroit. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Since 1920, the Bears have played just three games on a Friday, according to Stathead. Their last Friday game came on Sept. 16, 1966 — a Week 2 loss to the Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Before that, the Bears defeated the Cleveland Rams on Friday, Sept. 15, 1939, under the lights at Soldier Field in the season opener. It was a rare night game in Chicago for the Bears, who typically played at Wrigley Field, which had no lights back then.
The Bears also beat the Cleveland Indians football team — a league-sponsored team that played only one season — during a season-opening game on Friday, Sept. 18, 1931, at Loyola Stadium. That was the only game the team ever played at Loyola Stadium.
What does this game mean for the playoffs?
Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright celebrates after defeating the Steelers 31-28 on Nov. 23, 2025, at Soldier Field. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
As things stand, with both 8-3 teams near the top of the NFC, this game could have big playoff implications.
If the Bears and Eagles were to finish the season with identical records, their head-to-head result would be the first tiebreaker in determining which team earns the higher seed for the postseason.
Perhaps more notable is if the Bears lose Friday, Thursday’s winner in the matchup between the Detroit Lions (7-4) and Green Bay Packers (7-3-1) would take possession of first place in the NFC North (the Lions currently hold the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Bears). That would push the Bears into a wild-card spot and drop their seed from the current No. 3 to potentially No. 5 or No. 6.
This is a pivotal stretch for the Bears, who face the Eagles, Packers (twice), Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers and Lions over their final six games.
How can I watch or listen?
The game will be broadcast worldwide on Prime Video and available to stream in more than 240 countries and territories. Anyone with an Amazon Prime membership has access to Prime Video. Announcers Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit will be on the call.
In the Chicago area, the game also will be broadcast on Fox-32.
The Bears radio broadcast with Jeff Joniak and Tom Thayer is available on WMVP-AM 1000. The game is also available on radio at Westwood One and in Spanish at WVIV-FM 93.5.
