In the end, head coach Dick Jauron was fired after the conclusion of the season.
During this season, the team returns to their original home, Soldier Field, after a year of renovations and rebuilding during the previous season; in which the home games were temporary held at Memorial Stadium in the campus of the University of Illinois in Champaign.
Also introducing this season is the team's brand new mascot Staley Da Bear.
Staley was introduced during the team's home game on September 29, 2003 against the Green Bay Packers.
Beginning this season, the television broadcasts of the Bears preseason games were moved back to NBC Owned-and-operated station WMAQ-TV as part of a five-year broadcast partnership with the station and the team, these marked the return of the Bears preseason games on the station for the first time since the 1993 season and the return of the NFL games on the station for the first time since the 1997 season after the NBC network lost the rights of the American Football Conference to CBS (locally thru WBBM-TV) beginning with the 1998 season; ending its 9-year relationship with the team and WBBM-TV.