The Bears' schedule is expected to be released in early-to-mid May. In addition to home and road games against NFC North rivals the Lions, Packers and Vikings, they're stated to host the Rams, Seahawks, Jaguars, Titans, Panthers and Patriots and visit the Cardinals, 49ers, Texans, Colts and Commanders.

Correctly projecting the Bears' opponents in all 17 of their games (plus their bye week) in the Schedule Prediction Challenge is obviously a daunting task. But here are 12 tips to help you with your entry:

(1) The Bears have opened each of the past eight seasons by playing one home game and one road contest the first two weeks of the year. The last time they started with back-to-back home games was in 2015 and the last time they began with consecutive road contests was in 2008.

(2) The Bears will not open the season against the Packers. Green Bay will face the Eagles the Friday night of Week 1 in Brazil in the NFL's first game in South America.

(3) The Bears typically do not play at home on the same day as the Chicago Marathon, which is scheduled to be held Sunday, Oct. 13.

(4) The Bears will play a game in London, and of the 15 NFL contests in London since 2018, 14 have taken place in the month of October.

(5) Teams that play in London usually have their byes the following week.

(6) The Bears have not played a Monday night game at Soldier Field since 2021 and have not gone three straight seasons without hosting a MNF contest since 2005-07.

(7) Since 2013, the Bears have played 10 Thursday Night Football games—seven at Soldier Field and two in Green Bay.

(8) The Bears battle their NFC North rivals, the Lions, Packers and Vikings, twice every season. But they'll never face the same opponent in back-to-back weeks and rarely twice in three weeks. In fact, the only time since 2013 that they've played a division foe twice in three weeks was in 2018 when they did so against the Lions.

(9) In five of the last six seasons, the Bears have played each of their three NFC North opponents once before a second meeting with any of those teams.

(10) The NFL tries to avoid having teams play three straight home games or three consecutive road games. The Bears last had three straight home contests in 2014 and three in a row on the road in 2008.

(11) The Bears have played on Thanksgiving three of the last six years, winning all three games over the Lions in Detroit in 2018, 2019 and 2021.

(12) The Bears have closed the season against the Vikings six of the last eight years, with five of those six meetings in Minnesota. If the opponent isn't the Vikings, the Bears will play their season finale against either the Packers or Lions because the NFL schedules only division matchups the final week of the season.

Fans who correctly guess the opponents the Bears will face and the team's bye week for all 18 weeks of the 2024 regular season will have a chance to win:

• Two (2) tickets to each 2024 Bears regular-season home game* and away game* 
• Round-trip airfare for two (2) people to each 2024 Bears regular-season away game* 
• Hotel accommodations for two (2) people for one (1) night for each 2024 Bears regular-season away game* 
• $500 spending cash allowance per regular-season away game* ($4,000 total) 

If no one correctly predicts the schedule, the top five (5) highest scores will receive a prize based on the scoring system.

• 10 points for a correct division game pick. (must correctly pick the week, opponent and location) 
• 7 points for a correct non-division game pick (must correctly pick the week and opponent) 
• 5 points for correctly picking the bye week 
• 3 points for a partially correct division game pick (must correctly pick the week and opponent)
• 1 point for an incorrect game pick that is only week away from the correct date, either one week before or one week after 
• The highest score will receive a home* and an away* game of their choice to attend along with travel accommodations. Other prizes include two United Airlines travel vouchers** and autographed Bears merchandise.

* Excludes international games
** See official rules for restrictions

Upon entry, users will receive an email confirmation with a link that will tally their score after the schedule is officially announced by the NFL. The schedule is expected to be released in early-to-mid May.

Fans can enter the Schedule Prediction Challenge brought to you by United Airlines at ChicagoBears.com/SchedulePrediction. There is a maximum of five entries permitted per person.

Click here to enter and here for a complete list of rules.