It’s safe to say Brian Urlacher isn’t a big fan of the Bears playing in a dome.
Amid talks of the Bears potentially moving to Indiana and elsewhere in Illinois, the former Bears linebacker expressed his displeasure with the team possibly playing in a domed stadium on “This Is Football.”
“I do not like the Bears playing anywhere but Soldier Field,” Urlacher said this week. “Even if they went to Arlington Heights, which is in Illinois, they’re going to be in a dome, and if they go to Indiana they’ll be in a dome. I don’t like the idea of them playing in a dome anywhere.”
By playing indoors, Urlacher said the Bears would lose the home-field advantage that comes from playing outdoors in Chicago during the winter, where the home team is accustomed to the cold and the road team might not be.
“It’s the only advantage the Bears have,” Urlacher said. “You go to Soldier Field in November, December? It’s gonna suck. The weather is not gonna be good. You’re not gonna like it. And playing there, you practice in it, you get used to it, there’s some advantage to that.”
Soldier Field has hosted numerous games in poor weather over the years, like the 2026 wild-card round game, when the Bears stunned the Packers on a snow-covered field.
The Bears took a major step toward leaving Illinois on June 5, as the team’s board of directors voted to advance their stadium development in Hammond, Ind.
Despite the announcement, there’s no guarantee the team leaves Illinois.
While moving to Indiana is still a real possibility, a league source told ESPN that “Illinois can still get back in the race.”
The Bears will at least be in Chicago for 2026, where they’ll look to build on an 11-6 2025 season and divisional round appearance.
The Bears begin the 2026 season on Sept. 13 on the road at the Panthers.