NFL to kick off its 100th season with Bears-Packers -- not with Super Bowl champion New England Patriots

USA Today

The NFL usually kicks off each new season at the home of reigning Super Bowl champion. But to open the NFL's 100th season on NBC, the league has decided to celebrate its most historic rivalry: Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers, which began in 1921. The Bears-Packers game will open the NFL season on Thursday, Sept. 5 at Soldier Field in Chicago. The defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, meanwhile, will play on the first Sunday night of the season on NBC.

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