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George McCaskey admits second-guessing signing of Ray McDonald

George McCaskey

FILE - In this Jan. 3, 2012, file photo, Chicago Bears chairman George McCaskey speaks at a news conference at Halas Hall in Lake Forest, Ill. The Bears top executives say they back Commissioner Roger Goodell and support an independent investigation into the NFL’s handling of the Ray Rice domestic violence case. Chairman George McCaskey calls Goodell “a man of integrity” and says the Bears have “complete faith in him.” He also said Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, that fans deserve to know the facts. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, George LeClaire, File) MANDATORY CREDIT, MAGS OUT

AP

Bears owner George McCaskey said the decision to sign Ray McDonald this offseason was his.

So when he says he’s second-guessing that decision, he means he’s second-guessing his own process.

Via Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune, McCaskey told reporters that even though he initially said no and was talked into adding the troubled defensive lineman, that the decision to bring him aboard was “my decision, ultimately, alone.”

So it follows that he didn’t blame General Manager Ryan Pace for the embarrassing addition.

“Not at all. We have complete confidence in Ryan,” McCaskey said.

At the same time, he said he didn’t have any input on Monday’s decision to cut him when McDonald was again arrested for a domestic violence charge.

“I wasn’t involved because I didn’t need to be,” he said. “They knew what needed to be done and did it.”

McCaskey talked to McDonald prior to agreeing to sign him, warning him that his behavior had to improve. When it did not, McCaskey’s doubts crept in.

When asked why he didn’t talk to any of McDonald’s accusers prior to signing him, McCaskey said: “One of my concerns was the bias anybody has in that situation.”

Yet he didn’t consider that McDonald or his family might carry a bias themselves, which put him in the uncomfortable spot of answering questions today.