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The New England Patriots unofficially are a quarter way through their season.
Here are the five biggest concerns with the Patriots 1-3 after four weeks:
Offensive line
There's no bigger issue plaguing the Patriots than their offensive line, specifically pass protection. The struggles are well-documented. New England gave up 17 sacks in four games and more pressures than any team in the NFL. It's a coin flip whether or not starting quarterback Jacoby Brissett will be pressured. What makes this even worse, though, is there's no end in sight with 14 weeks left in the season. The Patriots started four left tackles in four games and suffered what's likely to be a season-ending injury to captain and starting center David Andrews, arguably their best and most important offensive lineman. It could get worse.
Pass rush
Second-year pass rusher Keion White largely impressed through four weeks but was a part of the problem in a Week 4 loss to the San Francisco 49ers when New England failed to set the edge and played "selfish" football. White is a top-10 edge defender and fifth-highest graded pass rusher, per Pro Football Focus. But New England doesn't have a top-50 defensive tackle in pass-rush metrics. Joshua Uche (20th edge rusher) and linebacker Jahlani Tavai (43rd) are the only players with top-50 pass-rush grades at their respective positions. New England is among the bottom 10 teams in pressure rater.
Struggles of star playmaker
Rhamondre Stevenson entered the season as New England's top skill-position player. And the running back proved deserving of that outlook during the first two games. But Stevenson now is on the brink of being benched after he coughed up four fumbles in four games.
Coaching
The biggest problem the Patriots face is their lack of talent. They had very few impactful starters and the myriad of injuries forced New England to go diving into its depth. It hasn't been good. But the coaching hasn't been either. The Patriots were out-coached in three consecutive games. Some of Jerod Mayo's in-game decisions have been questionable. It feels like offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt isn't scheming enough to help the Brissett-led offense. Perhaps the Patriots should play more two tight ends given those sets are some of their most effective? Defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington has played more zone schemes on the back end, too, and both the Seattle Seahawks and 49ers carved them up. Why not play more man-to-man with second-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez, especially on third down? The Patriots have a first-year head coach, first-year defensive coordinator and an offensive play-caller consistently calling plays for the first time. The growing pains are quite clear.
Roster construction
First-year executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf might turn out to be a good executive for the Patriots, but there's no denying he failed to construct an NFL roster in his first go. Some will point to Bill Belichick's drafting as a reason for that, and it's fair to think Wolf could have been provided a better roster. But it was Wolf who expected veteran right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor would be able to transition to left tackle. And it was Wolf who doubled down on that thought process when he drafted Caedan Wallace with the expectation the Penn State right tackle would be able to flip sides. The Patriots also failed to sign any insurance for Andrews, and now are tasking Nick Leverett to shift from guard to center with Andrews suffering a season-ending injury. There are other holes on the roster, of course, many of which were hinted previously. But Wolf undoubtedly played a big part in the disappointing start.
