NEW YORK -- The Green Bay Packers will face the Chicago Bears in the final Sunday night game of the regular season on New
Year's Eve thanks to the NFL's flexible schedule.
The Packers (7-8), one of five teams vying for the last playoff
spot in the NFC, will take on the Bears at Soldier Field. The
outcome will have no bearing on Chicago (13-2) because the Bears
have already clinched the top seed in the NFC and home-field
advantage.
The game, originally scheduled for 1 p.m., has been pushed back
to an 8:15 p.m. ET kickoff.
In other changes announced by the NFL on Monday night following
the New York Jets' 13-10 road victory over the Dolphins: Buffalo at
Baltimore, Miami at Indianapolis, and Atlanta at Philadelphia were
all shifted from 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. ET.
There are five scenarios in which the Packers have a chance to
make the playoffs. If they fail, it is possible that Brett Favre
will be playing his final NFL game in prime time.
If the New York Giants defeat the Washington Redskins on
Saturday night, the only hope for the Packers to make the
postseason would be with a win and a tiebreaker edge over New York
in strength of victory.
The moves are part of the network's flex scheduling, a feature
of the new television contract with the NFL that's meant to ensure
contending teams play in prime time late in the season.