Picture this, Packers fans: it's a beautiful Christmas morning with a glimmering layer of fresh snow coating the ground as you awake. The family runs downstairs to create new memories and exchange presents. The children get to bask in the glory of whatever Santa gifted them this year. Everyone has a nice breakfast, gets ready for the day, and joins together with loved ones to watch the Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Bears, all before Christmas dinner.
It doesn't get much better than that, does it?
That's the NFL's gift to its fans on Christmas Day as the Packers are set to visit the Chicago Bears for a Noon CST matchup on this year's holiday. This will mark only the third time the bitter Packers and Bears rivalry is showcased on the Christmas holiday, with the last holiday faceoff coming in 2011.
I hope you have your login or someone else's ready, because the exclusive rights to the NFL's Christmas Day slate belong to Netflix. You'll have to fire up the streamer to take in all the holiday action as Netflix enters its third year as home of football's Christmas Day coverage.
Given the marquee nature of the matchup, it's easy to infer that Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos made a push for two of the most historic franchises in football to face off on one of the biggest days in the sports calendar.
Packers have a real opportunity to ruin Chicago's Christmas festivities.
It's hard to say what the NFC North standings will look like by that time of year, but it's safe to assume once again that the Packers and Bears will firmly be in the Playoff hunt that late into the season. This will mark the Packers' third-to-last regular-season game, when division victories matter more than ever.
This also marks the first time that the Bears and Packers will play at Soldier Field on Christmas, as both of the previous two holiday matchups were held at Lambeau Field. Road games are no joke, especially at that time of year when the bitter cold will be settling into the Midwest.
Green Bay's lineup is no stranger to these big moments, and certainly no stranger to this Bears team either. It remains true that Chicago could turn the Packers' dream scenario into a nightmare if they get out to a strong start, but given the track record of these two teams in the last five years, there's no denying that it'll be a battle to the very end.
Maybe the real winners here are all the fans with no skin in the game who get to take in a tremendous matchup to kick off the day's slate. But if you're a Packer fan, and your favorite team takes care of business vs. Chicago, there's almost no better way to spend your Christmas Day.
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