The San Francisco 49ers caught a lot of flack last season for supporting Ray McDonald through the beginning of his many problems over the course of the year. As we stated then, however, we firmly believe the 49ers acted appropriately regarding a player who had yet to be charged with a crime. Just because the NFL wanted to severely punish the slighted chance of a misdeed is not a good reason to suspend a player.
As Ray McDonald kept doing more, however, the 49ers and GM Trent Baalke clearly saw a pattern develop: a pattern of “poor behavior” and bad decision making.