The Seattle Seahawks, of course, won the Super Bowl last season. By doing so, they get to kick off the 2026 season with a home game at Lumen Field. Their Week 1 opponent has not been officially announced yet, but it appears that the likely foe will be the Chicago Bears.
The reason is that most of Seattle's home opponents next season already have known games for Week 1. For instance, the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers will play on Thursday, September 10, the day after Seattle plays, in Australia.
Seattle currently has four potential opponents for the opener: The Arizona Cardinals, Bears, New England Patriots, and Los Angeles Chargers. A rematch of last season's Super Bowl is unlikely for Week 1, which leaves the Cardinals, Bears, and Chargers.
Seattle Seahawks seem likely to play the Chicago Bears in Week 1 of the 2026 season
The NFL certainly wants its season-opening game to draw a lot of attention, and the Cardinals are unlikely to do that, which leaves Chicago and LA. The Bears are the logical choice of the two teams to play the Seahawks, as the Bears made the postseason in 2025 and have a young and popular quarterback, Caleb Williams.
Having two playoff teams from the NFC battle to begin the season just makes the most sense. The NFL will leak games leading up to Thursday's official schedule release at 5 pm PT, and the opener could be one of the leaks simply because it appears clear to many fans what the matchup will be.
Playing against the Bears would give the Seattle Seahawks an immediate matchup with one of their outgoing free agents. Safety Coby Bryant signed with Chicago this offseason. His parting wasn't overly dramatic, and the player did not seem displeased with getting a huge offer from his former team, but he will be extra-motivated to play well against his last employer.
Chicago would also bring the kind of offense that can potentially test head coach Mike Macdonald's somewhat rebuilt defense. Besides Bryant, Seattle also lost edge rusher Boye Mafe and cornerback Riq Woolen in free agency. Still, the expectation will be that the Seahawks are very good defensively again.
The game might have another draw, too. Seattle chose running back Jadarian Price in the first round, and having a rookie skill position player with huge upside is going to bring in viewers. At the end of the day, viewers are what the NFL cares about most.
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