(104.3 The Score) The Bears will visit the Carolina Panthers on Sunday for their season opener, with kickoff set for noon CT from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
Our 104.3 The Score pregame show with Mark Grote, Olin Kreutz and Patrick Mannelly will begin at 9 a.m. and last until kickoff. Our postgame show will begin around 3 p.m., just after the final buzzer. Our Bears postgame show will be carried only on YouTube and Twitch as a Cubs broadcast will be on the radio airwaves and online stream. You can find our YouTube channel here and our Twitch channel here.
You can check out all of The Score’s preview coverage of the Bears-Panthers matchup by clicking here. Below are game predictions from our Score hosts, producers and writers.
David Haugh: Bears 31, Panthers 27
No way Ben Johnson’s offense sputters back in his home state, in front of old friends and relatives, and it will bail out a Bears defense that remains a work in progress. But beating a playoff team on the road to open a season would require no apology.
Matt Spiegel: Bears 20, Panthers 13
NFL offense is ugly for a while to start a season, so true 2026 Bears confidence is going to be a slow build. Just win in the meantime.
Chris Emma: Bears 24, Panthers 21
The Bears will kick off the new campaign in familiar fashion, with Caleb Williams leading a late comeback victory to beat the Panthers. This should be a heck of a game between a pair of playoff teams from a year ago and a great way to start a much-anticipated season for Chicago football.
Alex Kuhn: Bears 24, Panthers 21
This won’t be easy. The Bears’ rush defense will be tested against Chuba Hubbard and a really good interior Panthers offense line. The Chicago offense also gets tested against a revamped Carolina defense, but the Bears win a squeaker.
Tyler Buterbaugh: Bears 31, Panthers 17
Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams and this Bears offense will come out firing on all cylinders, and we’ll see a big difference in the productivity compared to last year. Despite the Bears defense being a big question mark, I believe we’ll see a better Jaylon Johnson and rookie safety Dillon Thieneman will make an early impact in the secondary.
Tyler Ferengul: Bears 31, Panthers 24
The Chicago defense may be banged up, but the Bears are still the better team and have a superior offense. Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson start on their mission early as the Bears make it hard for opponents to keep up with their high-scoring offense. Chicago leaves Carolina victorious to start the 2026 season.
Clint Clouse: Bears 28, Panthers 20
I was pretty good in this last year (go look at the numbers), so I'm hoping to replicate my performance. I'm pretty high on the Bears this season, but they shouldn't sleep on this Panthers team. Carolina gave a lot of teams fits down the stretch and made additions to a defense that was above average. I expect the Panthers to give the Bears a scare but not enough for me not to pick the Bears.
Grant Lieder: Bears 20, Panthers 13
The Bears have the better offense, as the Panthers are inconsistent on that side of the ball. While I think the Panthers have a better defense, I can’t confidently say they can score as much as the Bears. Bear down, 1-0.
