Packers to meet Bears in 2019 NFL season opener

The Green Bay Packers will kick off the 2019 season on the road against the Chicago Bears.

The Matt LaFleur era will begin in a game against the defending NFC North champions.

The Green Bay Packers will meet the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in the NFL’s season opener on Thursday, Sept. 5.

The team announced the news on Twitter:

So start the countdown. The Green Bay Packers’ regular season opener is 164 days away.

Will this be the start of a playoff season for Green Bay? The game will certainly have a different feel to it, with the Bears entering as favorites against a Packers team with a new head coach. For many years it was the other way around.

Last year, these two teams met in Week 1 in Matt Nagy’s first game as head coach for Chicago. This time, it’ll be LaFleur in his first game as Packers head coach.

Talk about a tough test for Green Bay right away. All division games are difficult, especially on the road. But Green Bay enters a new season with a new head coach and will take on the defending division champs.

The NFL has decided to break away from tradition this year, with the Super Bowl champions not hosting the season opener. But according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the New England Patriots will host the Sunday Night Football game instead.

The full NFL regular season schedule will likely be released next month, but we now know Green Bay’s Week 1 opponents. Here is a full list of the teams on the schedule for the 2019 season:

Home: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins

Away: Chicago Bears (Thursday, Sept. 5), Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers

So the question now is simple — how many points will the Packers win by in the season opener?