So, a few weeks ago, we sent a playful email to Shuler’s press guy, asking for an interview. We didn’t think anything would come of it, to be honest. In fact, we were thinking of turning it into a part of the site like, "Why won’t Heath Shuler face the truth?" or "Day 12 of Shuler ignoring us" or something.
So, we were a bit surprised when he called us on Saturday.
The full interview is after the break, but here is the summary:
Like any good politician, he has his talking points down about why he failed in the NFL (here’s another interview where he said pretty much the same stuff). They are:
- The team wasn’t very good
- Washington wasn’t the right system
- Norv put him in before he was ready
- He was just getting on track in New Orleans when injuries finally derailed his career.
Talking to him, we believe he is sincere in believing that he was just a victim of bad luck. It’s not surprising -- there aren’t a whole lot of athletes that are going to come out and say, "you know what, I just wasn’t very talented." He’s a bit delusional, but not in a bitter or paranoid way -- he only threw Norv under one wheel of the bus.
He tried to twist around the idea that he would curse the Redskins if he came back to DC (or that he already is cursing them) by suggesting that if he got elected, perhaps he would reverse whatever curse he planted on the team the first time around. It was a nice effort.
He claims that he finds this site funny, entertaining, and a good thing. We don’t know if we completely believe that either -- if he had called us "ungrateful little pricks holding a grudge" or something, he wouldn’t have looked very Congressional. Nonetheless, he laughed at our jokes, and only really tightened up when we accused him of being stupid.
Oh, and he and his wife struggle to come up with baby names, which is how they ended up with "Navy" and "Island."
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Stop Shuler: Why did you fail in the NFL?
Heath Shuler: I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Everyone on the team, myself included, gave 110%. You’ve got to give the team that -- we tried hard. It just didn’t work out there. It’s not uncommon, just look at Steve Young in Tampa Bay, Brett Favre in Atlanta -- they had to go to other places, where they had a lot of talent around them before they succeeded.
SS: You just compared yourself to two Hall of Fame quarterbacks -- is that fair?
HS: Well, I’m just saying that they are examples of how sometimes things don’t work out the first place you go. Look at my good friends Trent Green and Brad Johnson -- they played in DC and went on to success elsewhere -- Brad even won a Super Bowl.
SS: They also played well in Washington, though.
HS: True enough.
SS: Do you think Norv Turner mishandled the QB situation when you were there?
HS: Coach Turner was rookie like the rest of us. I’m sure he looks back on things and thinks he made some mistakes, just like we all do. I don’t know if it would have ever worked for me in Washington.
SS: One of the criticisms that people have made is that perhaps Turner’s offense was too complicated for you. Some have even suggested that you forgot the plays on the way to the huddle.
HS: I think you need to hear a coach or another player say that before you can say that it is true. Just because you hear in on some blog or on your site, doesn’t mean it is true.
SS: So, it wasn’t a matter of the playbook being too complicated for you?
HS: No -- that couldn’t be farther from the truth. You shouldn’t believe that stuff unless you hear it from a coach.
SS: The reason you cited for not doing a debate with your opponent was that you give 110% on any day but Sunday. You had to know that people would connect it to your playing days. Did your "no work on Sunday" policy affect your play?
HS: [Laughs] That must have been it -- you’ve figured it out. I was used to playing on Friday nights and Saturdays -- that’s why the NFL wasn’t a success.
SS: You did win the only Redskins game you played on a Saturday.
HS: Maybe you’ve discovered the secret. I’ll take my faith over football any day.
SS: You talk about "Mountain Values" a lot. What exactly are mountain values? How are they different than coastal values? I saw the movie Deliverance recently -- they had mountain values, but I assume yours are different.
HS: Mountain values are about community, faith, and respect for others. They are about saying "yes sir" and "no ma’am" and taking your hat off when you go indoors. They are about pulling over for a funeral procession. They are about being there for people when they need help.
SS: They don’t sound unique to mountains. They actually sound like military values.
HS: You may not understand what they mean, being on the coast, but the people around here know what we’re talking about.
SS: If you are elected, what is the next step? No one wants to be just a Congressman. You have to campaign constantly, and freshman Congressmen are not even like freshmen on a football team -- they’re like freshmen male cheerleaders, pecking order-wise.
HS: I think actually I will be able to get a lot done -- we have received a lot of national attention. That is the reason your site has been in the news as well. I think I will be able to have influence.
SS: I was thinking more about your personal ambition -- do you want to be a Senator? Or Governor? Or worse?
HS: Well, I think we’re going to take things one step at a time. We’re going to make sure that Western North Carolina is represented well, and our country is headed is the right direction. I’m not going to worry about anything else.
SS: Obviously your training with dealing with sports media has done you well -- you can say the same things: "We’re just going to take it one game at a time, and good Lord willing, it will all work out."
HS: [Laughs] I guess you’re right.
SS: Okay, November 26, 1995. RFK stadium -- a 14-7 loss to the Eagles. Did you hear me boo?
HS: What? Did I hear you boo? I mean, I obviously couldn’t pick one person out --
You know, was that you guys that got a beach ball taken away? I heard some boos when that happened, I’m sure it wasn’t because of an interception or anything…
SS: Now some random questions. Do you really not drink carbonated beverages?
HS: No, I don’t. It was a challenge my dad laid on me when I was a kid, and I stick with it. I’ll have some tea when I’m out and about, though.
SS: So is it the bubbles? Or the caffeine?
HS: The caffeine. I’m disciplined about these things, but if I’m at an event where there’s just tea, I’ll drink it.
SS: The names of your kids are Navy and Island -- what’s up with that?
HS: My son is Navy. It was the only name my wife and I agreed on -- she made a list of ten names, and I made a list of ten names. And that was the only one that matched. It was from a road atlas -- there was a Navy street on a map. My daughter is Island -- it came from Island transportation company. My wife and I were driving around talking about names, and the truck went by. We both liked it. They’re good nautical names. We don’t have any oceans up here in the mountains, so I guess we thought we would use the nautical theme.
SS: Just so you know, you have inspired my wife and I to name our next child "Marine Corps."
HS: [Laughs] That’s funny.
SS: Do you really talk to Steve Spurrier?
HS: Yes, I do. I talked to him when he took the SC job, and then after spring practice. I haven’t talked to him recently, because I’ve been so busy. But the Volunteers play South Carolina tonight, and that’s always a good game.
SS: I refer to the Steve Spurrier era as Redskins head coach as "Two years of my life I’m not getting back." I’m sure Redskins fans don’t like the idea of you two getting together.
HS: [Laughs] I suppose that is true.
SS: So what do you really think of this website?
HS: Well, we live in a free country, and I figure that as long as people are talking about me, it’s a good thing. I like watching the site to see what’s next -- it is like being a character in a book. It’s always interesting. It keeps us motivated here at the office, and it keeps us laughing. I think it is good that someone can make light of politics. It’s like seeing politicians on the Daily Show -- it’s good to laugh at politicians. I figure that if you can laugh at yourself, it makes you a better person.
SS: Do you think it will have an impact on the election?
HS: Well, we’re spending millions of dollars to reach tens of thousands of voters, and it is hard for one person or one site to have much of an impact. But I think it’s great. I really do. Now, would my parents or my wife like it -- probably not. They take these things too personally.
I mean, there was no one who wanted me to play better in Washington that I did. After the third game in my rookie year, when we weren’t doing well with John Friez, the coach comes up to me and says, "Kid, are you ready?" What was I going to say? "No, let me sit another year?" I mean as a competitor, you want to get out there and play, whether you’re ready or not.
SS: So you don’t think you were ready to play?
HS: Listen, not too many freshman quarterbacks make an immediate impact like Peyton Manning or Troy Aikman. You are seeing some this year, like Matt Leinart, who showed some poise bringing his team down the field against the Bears, but the kicker missed the field goal.
SS: How you like to get compared to quarterbacks like Ryan Leaf?
HS: I don’t think I do get compared to him.
SS: Well, we did. And it comes up every so often talking about draft busts.
HS: I think the biggest difference between Ryan Leaf and I were our personalities. You didn’t see me snapping at anyone in the media.
I think if you look at my career, I just didn’t get the downs. I split time my first two years, and my third year, I didn’t play. I went to the Saints had won my last two starts when I dislocated every toe on my left foot in a game against the Raiders.
SS: Ouch.
HS: Then I went to the Raiders a couple years later, and I thought Jon Gruden’s system was the right place for me. I thought my mobility and my athleticism would fit in well. In the west coast offense, it’s 1-2-3-4-5 throw, and it doesn’t allow for it. But if your toes don’t work, you can’t run, and there you have it.
SS: If you do get elected, will you stay away from the team?
HS: What do you mean?
SS: Well, it’s kind of our theory that you’re a curse.
HS: [Laughs] Well, there aren’t too many people I know left on the team. I remain close to [Redskins Head Trainer] Bubba Tyer of course, I really respect him about as much as any one in the world. Bobby Mitchell as well -- BJ at the front desk, is about as a quality human being as you will ever meet. As far as a curse, you know the team was 3-13 before I got there, so maybe, you know, it wasn’t me.
Although, maybe if I go back, I’ll turn it around, and lift the curse.
SS: You mean this could reverse the curse?
HS: Yeah, I like that -- send me back to Washington and I’ll reverse the curse. [Laughs]
SS: Okay, one last question. One of the things we want to do before the election is to ask the mainstream media to stop referring to you as a "former NFL quarterback." The theory being that they shouldn’t, since you weren’t successful at it. I mean, they don’t call Michael Jordan a "former professional baseball player." So, what you would rather be described as?
- A Failed NFL QB
- A Former college QB
- A Real Estate Magnate
- A Tool of San Francisco liberals (suggested by the Taylor campaign)
HS: [Laughs] I like that last one. Hold on, read them again, maybe we can combine them.
SS: A Failed NFL QB, A Former College QB, A Real Estate Magnate, or A Tool of San Francisco liberals.
HS: How about a "Failed former college and NFL quarterback who also failed in the west coast offense." That way we get the California thing in there, too. [Laughs]
SS: Okay, I’ll put that down. Thanks for your time, and being a good sport about this.
HS: No problem, and keep doing what you’re doing -- I really do enjoy it.
Well, the election is less than week away. Shuler is 
