LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Six weeks ago, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Pace sounded pleased by the progress Pernell McPhee made following offseason knee surgery.

“The good thing is that he came in at a really good weight today,” Pace said in Bourbonnais on July 27.

“So I know he’s been working hard over the summer so that’s very encouraging. And really in the OTAs, he wasn’t doing a lot of football stuff. He was doing stuff more on the side with our strength and conditioning coaches. Now, it’s just going to be, ‘Hey, [trainers], how do you feel?’ as we build him back in instead of just throwing him out there right away with full speed football drills.”

However, McPhee, aside from rehab work, never stepped foot on the practice field in the preseason, and on Saturday, the club placed him on the regular season physically unable to perform list (PUP), guaranteeing that he misses a minimum of six weeks, perhaps even longer.

Pernell McPhee is on the PUP list, guaranteeing that he misses a minimum of six weeks. Jeff Haynes/AP Images for Panini

What happened to the optimistic outlook?

“Yeah, it was just like with these medical things, I know this is sensitive because the club likes to keep these things quiet and you guys [want the facts],” Pace said Monday. “I really respect both sides. I honestly think with the medical process, every one of these is a day by day evaluation and every player, every individual is different, so there’s no exact science to it.

“With the PUP decision with Pernell, let’s take a moment right now and honestly see where he’s at, get all our doctors’ opinions and do what’s best for him and what’s best for the club. This delays it six weeks and allows him to continue to train. And you guys have seen him out there working every day. He’s working really hard. I still feel good about the path he’s on, but right now there’s not necessarily as much of a rush as there will be after Week 6.”

The harsh reality is McPhee is one of the Bears’ best pass-rushers. Even with a bad knee last year, McPhee still finished third in sacks (six) and tied for second in tackles-for-loss (10) in only 14 games. And McPhee is highly compensated. Pace’s first important signing in the 2015 offseason, McPhee counts $7.675 million against the cap in 2016. If McPhee is on the team next year, that cap figure bumps up to $7.825 million.

It’s hard to envision the Bears defense truly taking the next step unless McPhee returns and enjoys a productive final 10-12 weeks of the season.

Pace insists McPhee, whom the club does not make available for interviews, is eager to get back on the field.

“Man, you guys know his personality,” Pace said. “He’s a passionate guy. He gets emotional. He’s a leader on our team, whether he’s playing right now or not. He’s a leader on our team. Sometimes, I think he feels, obviously as a leader, my voice carries more impact when I’m out there playing and I think that bothers them. But I think that time’s going to come and he’s so powerful as a person he can still lead from the position that he’s in.”