Colts’ season won’t be easy

So much for being easy.
That was the prediction made by many, and definitely by me, for the Indianapolis Colts this season. I declared them by far the best team in a weak division, saying they would cruise in the AFC South title.
Now, they’re 0-2.
Granted, those two losses came against the defending AFC champions and the defending NFC East champions. And, though I’m never a fan of putting blame on officials — teams shouldn’t leave themselves in a position where referees can take away a win — Indianapolis did suffer from a couple of missed/bad calls Monday night.
But still, 0-2 is 0-2.
To quote Bill Parcells, “You are what your record says you are.”
And as Atlanta learned last season, a couple of close losses to good teams early in the season can lead to a spiral out of control. (After winning the division in 2012, the Falcons lost four of their first five games — all by a touchdown or less — and foundered to a 4-12 season.)
The track record for 0-2 teams is not strong. Since the NFL moved to the 12-team playoff format, only 23 of 198 teams (11.6 percent) that have started with consecutive losses have gone on to make the playoffs.
And Houston is 2-0, giving the Texans a two-game head start in the division race.
That’s not encouraging.
The good news for Colts fans is, they have already played two of the four most difficult games on its schedule. And the others are both at home — Oct. 19 against Cincinnati and Nov. 16 against New England.
Indianapolis should get back on track Sunday at Jacksonville in the first of its six divisional games. And it still gets to play Philadelphia’s three division rivals in the weak NFC?East.
So the 0-2 start doesn’t necessarily mean this Indianapolis season will be a disaster. But it does mean winning a second straight division title will be anything but easy.