The NFL’s Loserville

The Indianapolis Colts, by virtue of their 20-7 throttling by the New York Jets on Monday night (at home!), joined the NFL’s surprising collection of 0-2 teams. Welcome to Loserville, where 0-2 teams have, historically, just a 12 percent chance of making the playoffs.

The Colts did a terrible job of protecting quarterback Andrew Luck, who was in turn blamed by coach Chuck Pagano for the loss. This has all the earmarks of ugly. And they are not the only so-called contender in a struggle.

Also in Loserville:

The New York Giants, who are 0-2 for the third straight season. They’ve blown double-digit leads in both games.

The Philadelphia Eagles. Coach Chip Kelly wrested control of personnel from general manager Howie Roseman and has made a hash (or scrapple) of it.

The Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears are both oh-fers and both have banged-up quarterbacks. Matthew Stafford may play Sunday but Jay Cutler will be out at least two games with a hamstring injury. The New Orleans Saints, who have lost six consecutive home games, may be missing QB Drew Brees (shoulder) for a while.

The Seattle Seahawks, after back-to-back Super Bowl parties, seem to finally be experiencing the hangover. They clearly miss holdout safety Kam Chancellor.

The Baltimore Ravens were touted in preseason as a Super Bowl contender. Their secondary can’t cover anyone.

The Houston Texans have tried two quarterbacks with no success. Tom Savage would be Bachelor No. 3.

Remember that 0-2 isn’t a death sentence. It’s just a deep pit from which to climb. The Ravens, for instance, have lost twice on the road, but can start on the path to decency by winning at home against the Cincinnati Bengals, their 2-0 AFC North rival. The Giants play on Thursday night at home against the Washington Redskins and can still compete in a so-so division with a win.

Trust me, no one wants to join the 0-3 Club. If 0-2 is Loserville, 0-3 is The Let’s Fire The Coach Band and Street Choir.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .