Smear the quarterback

Here’s a nomination for the political low-blow of the day: With a new poll showing U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., running neck and neck with Republican challenger Jeff Miller, National Review Online’s Jim Geraghty embedded some video from Shuler’s NFL playing days to poke fun at Shuler’s ability to perform under pressure. The clip from “NFL Top 10 Draft Busts” recounts Shuler’s disappointing pro career (he’s No. 9 on the bust list). Shuler was a quarterbacking star at Tennessee when the Washington Redskins made him the third pick overall in the ’94 draft. He struggled over three seasons with the Redskins — once throwing five interceptions in a game — before being traded to the Saints. He retired from the NFL in 1998 because of injuries. Shuler was elected to Congress in 2006 and re-elected 2008. He’s generally humble and good-humored about his crummy NFL career. Now, like many Democrats, he’s in a tight race for re-election. Geraghty writes a cheeky blog, but the jab at Shuler’s pro football career is, shall we say, a wee bit of piling on.

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