Doctors find irregularity in Pernell McPhee's right knee

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- Chicago Bears outside linebacker Pernell McPhee was placed on the physically unable to perform list after team doctors discovered an irregularity in McPhee's right knee during a physical exam on Wednesday.

"He truly is day to day," Bears coach John Fox said Thursday.

McPhee underwent arthroscopic right knee surgery on Friday morning and remains on the PUP list with no timetable to return. Fox called the procedure a standard "cleanup."

Fox gave a vague response when questioned about the timing of McPhee's latest setback. The veteran pass-rusher attended most of the Bears' offseason workouts that were open to the media. McPhee also never complained about the right knee on the couple of occasions he spoke with reporters since the end of last season.

"We don't see him for five weeks by rule," Fox said. "So whether it was in conditioning -- I don't want to speculate what it was, but obviously it was something that was bothering him a little bit to mention it in the physical, and they're still evaluating it."

McPhee battled a balky left knee for much of the 2015 regular season after Chicago signed him to a five-year contract that included $15.5 million in guarantees.

He underwent knee surgery the following offseason and began the 2016 regular season on the PUP list. By rule, McPhee missed the first six weeks of the season, but returned to play in the next nine games. A shoulder injury in Week 16 kept him out of the finale.

"Pernell is a dog, man. He's going to push through whatever," Bears inside linebacker Danny Trevathan said Thursday. "But if something isn't right with him, he's going to let you know. He's going to work to get better. That's the type of leader that he is. That's the type of person he is."

McPhee, 28, has 27 career sacks and five forced fumbles over six seasons with Baltimore and Chicago. Since joining the Bears, McPhee has started 12 games and been inactive nine times. The team used him primarily as a rotational player last year, sharing snaps with fellow outside linebackers Leonard Floyd and Willie Young.

McPhee enters the 2017 season with the highest salary cap number ($7.25 million) of any player on Chicago's defense.

In other injury news, Fox said nose tackle Eddie Goldman and safety Deon Bush were unable to finish their conditioning tests Wednesday. Goldman missed Thursday's practice because of dehydration, Fox said.

Cornerback Marcus Cooper -- guaranteed $6 million in 2017 -- left the field early because of muscle tightness. Cooper sat out much of Chicago's offseason program because of soft tissue problems.