Looking at the slate of opponents the Patriots are set to take on during the 2026 season, there were, of course, a handful of games that stand out above the rest. One of those games is playing the Bears in Chicago in Week 7 on Thursday Night Football, and it's not just because we'll get another chance to see Caleb Williams, the 2024 first overall pick, vs. Drake Maye.
Perhaps more interesting is finally seeing Ben Johnson vs. Mike Vrabel, as the pair were the most sought-after head coaching candidates during the 2025 offseason. In fact, they were favorites to take on the Patriots' vacancy, with plenty of New England fans hoping the former Lions' offensive coordinator would win the job.
Obviously, that's not what happened, and instead, Johnson took the job with the Bears and went on to lead them to their most successful season in recent memory, proving exactly why he was the right hire.
The same could be said of Vrabel, too, since the Patriots not only won the division and made the playoffs, but they represented the AFC in the Super Bowl. Although it didn't go according to plan during the big game, it was still a feat nobody predicted was possible.
Now we'll have a chance to see these two juggernaut coaches square off against each other for the first time, and it's unsurprising that it's a primetime matchup.
A battle of the next era of great head coaches will be a game fans don't want to miss
Because the Bears and the Patriots are teams on the rise, their Week 7 matchup will inevitably have more eyes on it than there typically would be, particularly over the last few years. That's only more apparent when looking at their quarterbacks and now their head coaches, making it more of a must-see game for fans across the league.
It will inevitably be viewed as a battle of the best young stars on the sidelines, and who comes out victorious might change the narrative about their immediate and long-term future.
It seems fair to say that both are going to be mainstays in the NFL based on what we've seen from them throughout their careers, and from the looks of it, they're only just getting started in Chicago and New England.
It will be an interesting test for Vrabel, in particular, since not all Patriots fans were thrilled that Robert Kraft chose to hire him over Johnson. Many felt it was another mistake waiting to happen since he was another familiar name to the organization and someone who previously played for the franchise, and we saw how well that went with Jerod Mayo.
Vrabel has already surpassed what Mayo accomplished, with many factors working in his favor, of course, and a win in this game against the Bears can further solidify his role as the head coach of the future in Foxboro. It would be a fantastic way to prove the naysayers wrong, and who doesn't want that?
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