RICHMOND — Scot McCloughan defended the Washington Redskins’ signing of troubled outside linebacker Junior Galette on Sunday, insisting that he, and other team officials, were diligent in their research of Galette’s issues before they offered him a contract.
Galette signed a one-year, $745,000 deal on Friday, five days after he was released by the New Orleans Saints amid a series of character concerns. He was arrested in January on allegations of domestic violence, and in June, a two-year-old video of a man who appears to be Galette striking people on the beach with a belt surfaced on the Internet.
McCloughan said the process of vetting Galette began the previous week, when he found out the Saints were on the verge of releasing the outside linebacker despite handing him a four-year, $41.5 million contract last September.
He said he spoke to more than 20 people about Galette, and then hosted him for an interview at the Redskins’ downtown training camp hotel on Thursday that, at times, also included coach Jay Gruden and president Bruce Allen.
“It’s a long process, and I promise you guys this: Being new here and knowing where we’re going and what we want to build, I’m not going to bring a bad guy in here,” McCloughan said. “I know he’s a really good football player, which I really respect, but I’m not going to bring a bad guy in here. I will not give on that at all.
“I sat with him for two hours and it was very intense. Very intense. I mean, to the point where we were almost face-to-face, telling him what I expected, and if he can’t bring it, then we don’t want you. Somebody else will sign him. That’s a given. He’s way too talented at 27 years old not to be signed.”
McCloughan, when presented with the idea that Galette is a “bad guy,” drew a distinction between Galette’s actions and someone who has had multiple legal issues. The charges against Galette from the January incident were later dismissed, but a lawsuit filed by his accuser in February is outstanding.
“It’s not about a bad guy,” McCloughan said. “All players have issues. We all have some kind of issue. We’ve all made mistakes or something. I don’t want the repeat offenders. I don’t want the guy that I know is not going to be a good guy and bring in our locker room. I think we have a very good defensive staff. We have a very good defensive meeting room, where you can bring a guy in and say, ’We understand you did this and this, OK? Boom. You do it again, you’re going to be gone. If you don’t do it again, we’re going to be rocking and rolling.’”
McCloughan acknowledged that the video of the beach brawl was “scary,” and he pressed Galette for the story behind it. Though McCloughan would not share what Galette’s explanation was — and clarified that he was not defending him — he was satisfied with the explanation.
The league still could punish Galette for its actions under the personal conduct policy it revised late last season. The investigation is ongoing, and McCloughan echoed what Gruden said on Friday — that the team has not been apprised of its status.
Still, McCloughan determined that it was worth pursuing Galette, who figures to step in as a starter opposite Ryan Kerrigan. That would push Trent Murphy and rookie Preston Smith, a second-round draft pick in May, to a reserve role.
McCloughan presented the idea to Allen, who McCloughan said was on board.
“He had other options, and for some reason, we talked him into us being his first visit,” McCloughan said. “He came in, and I can tell you, when he left my room, the guy was crying. He was sweating. He was so excited to be [with the Redskins]. That’s passion. That’s what I’m looking for: competitiveness, toughness. Now, he has to walk the line, and he knows that. If he doesn’t, then he’s gone. It’s plain and simple.”
• Zac Boyer can be reached at zboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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