Post by motm on Jan 4, 2017 12:51:17 GMT -6
Bears owner and chairman George McCaskey met with reporters Wednesday at Halas Hall, offering a brief state-of-the-team assessment.
McCaskey’s comments came only moments after his general manager Ryan Pace and head coach John Fox finished their season-ending press conference. After a 3-13 season that left the Bears in last place for the third consecutive season and out of the playoffs for the sixth straight year, the tone in Lake Forest proved measured with McCaskey vowing to remain patient and still finding reasons for optimism. Here are the highlights of what he had to say.
On what level of disappointment he felt at the home finale in seeing more than 20,000 empty seats at Soldier Field as the Bears were losing to the Redskins
Well the whole season was disappointing. Ryan and John touched on that of course. When I was (working) in the ticket office (years ago), I worried about every empty seat. But I also celebrated every occupied seat. The Bears fans that I talked to in the parking lots tailgating and in the seats and so forth, they were telling me, ‘Hang in there. It’s going to get better. We like your general manager. We like your coach.’ And
like everybody else, they want more wins. They deserve more wins and we’re going to do everything we can to get them.
On whether he can at least acknowledge growing fan apathy as a concern
We always want everybody engaged and we understand that we need to play better to get people engaged. But Bears fans have been terrific. Through thick and thin. Like I said, when I was in the ticket office people would tell me with such pride how their grandfather or grandmother acquired the season tickets in the first place and how they have no intention of giving them up and how they want to bring their kids to the games and continue the family tradition. We get that the Bears are such an important part of people’s lives and we need to do our part. Bears fans deserve a winner.
On how he’d assess Pace’s performance after two seasons on the job
I’m pleased with the job he’s done. He talked from the beginning about how this was going to take time, about how we needed to be patient. I told him I’m not a patient person but I promised him that I would be patient. With all the adversity that we’ve had, I like the steady hand that he and John have had on the team. These guys fought for each other all season. They never pointed fingers. And I think that’s a credit to the type of player that we have. And I think it’s also a credit to John and his coaching staff for keeping them together.
On where his patience level is at now
Like I said, I’m not a patient person. But I promised Ryan that I would be patience.
On the reaction of his mother, Virginia McCaskey, on the Bears’ continued struggles
She’ll be 94 tomorrow. She has outlived her dad, her mom, her only sibling, her husband and a son. She’s had her share of heartache. But she is a remarkably resilient person. I tell people that she’s tougher than her dad was. And those who know her don’t disagree. This is hard for her. Every loss is painful. But she supports what we’re doing. She’s on board. Like every Bears fan, she wants more wins. And we intend to get them for her.
Link: www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-george-mccaskey-patience-rebuilding-efforts-20170104-story.html