Find out how to watch the NFL Wild Card Round matchup between the Bears and Saints on Sunday, Jan. 10.
The No. 2 NFC seed Saints will host the No. 7 Bears for a wild card matchup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Jan. 10.
New Orleans (12-4) clinched the NFC South division title for the fourth-consecutive season. Chicago (8-8) enters the game looking to become just the sixth team to win an opening-round game with a .500 record.
New Orleans opens as a 9.5-point favorite against Chicago.
How to Watch:
Time: 4:40 p.m. ET
TV Channel: CBS, Nickelodeon and Amazon Prime
Live Stream: You can stream the NFL Wild Card Round game live on fuboTV (sign up for a free seven-day trial)
The Saints finished the regular season as the second-best team in the NFC behind the Green Bay Packers. Star running back Alvin Kamara—along with all of the other Saints running backs—did not play in the team's 33–7 victory against the Carolina Panthers on Jan. 3 after Kamara tested positive for COVID-19 and contact tracing was conducted. Kamara finished the regular season with 932 yards (14th in the league) on 187 carries with 21 touchdowns (16 rushing, five receiving). He is expected to play Sunday after finishing his quarantine.
Quarterback Drew Brees finished the regular season with 2,942 passing yards, 24 touchdowns and six interceptions. In 16 playoff games, he is 8-8 overall and 6-3 in home settings. In the last meeting between the two teams, the Saints squeaked out a 26-23 overtime win against the Bears in Week 8 at Soldier Field. Brees completed 31 of his 41 passes for 280 yards and two touchdowns.
The Saints' offense enters the game averaging 376.4 yards per game (12th in the league). Defensively, New Orleans ranks fourth in the league in yards allowed (310.9) and tied for third with nine turnovers. Saints defensive end Trey Hendrickson recorded 13.5 sacks in 15 regular season games, tied for second in the NFL with Rams star Aaron Donald.
The Bears finished in second place behind the NFC-leading Green Bay Packers. Chicago returns to the playoffs for the first time since the 2018 season, when the Bears were eliminated in a 16–15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the wild-card round on Jan. 6, 2019.
Chicago will rely on quarterback Mitchell Trubisky to help the franchise earn its 18th playoff win and third wild-card round victory in franchise history. Trubisky makes his second playoff appearance in three seasons. Only three quarterbacks in Bears' history has done that since 1970. In Trubisky's only postseason game, he threw for 303 yards and a touchdown against the Eagles.
In the regular season, Trubisky threw for 2,055 yards, 16 touchdowns and eight interceptions across 10 games. The Bears went 3-2 over the last five games, most recently losing to the Packers in their season finale. In those five games, Trubisky threw seven touchdowns and three interceptions.
The Bears also need to incorporate running back David Montgomery in Sunday's game. Montgomery ranks fifth in the league with 1,508 scrimmage yards. He rushed for 89 yards on 21 carries in their first game against the Saints this season.
Chicago must also come in ready to play on defense Sunday. The Bears enter the game ranked 11th in the league in total yards allowed. Linebacker Khalil Mack leads the team in sacks and is one of two players in the league with eight-plus sacks in each of his last six seasons. He is also responsible for a sack and forced fumble in the Bears' loss to the Saints in Week 8.
The Bears have given up 231.6 passing yards per game (12th in the NFL) and 113.4 yards on the ground (15th).
The winner of the Bears-Saints game will advance to the NFC Divisional Round and face the top-seeded Packers.