In particular, Edelman pointed out what looks to be a major offseason misstep in letting Jakobi Meyers walk in favor of JuJu Smith-Schuster. Meyers, who established himself as Mac Jones’ safety blanket and trusty slot receiver, has reeled in 18 catches and two touchdowns over three games with the Raiders. 

Smith-Schuster has 14 catches for New England, but for just 86 total yards. 

“I’m still a little shook on the Jakobi Meyers departure. I didn’t get that. … He could separate a lot,. He could run routes. He was tough in the run game. He would go in and block (with) force. And that’s what you preach as a New England receiver: Get open, catch the ball, and block in the run game. Those are the three things you hear all the time. This receiver group we have, it just seems like they’re struggling to create separation regardless of the reason. They haven’t been able to separate.”

Devin McCourty 

The days of thinking that the 2023 Patriots might be a viable playoff contender have come and gone.

Now, former Patriots safety Devin McCourty believes that New England’s best bet moving forward is seeking a top pick in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft.

“If you’re in the New England area, it’s all about Super Bowls,” McCourty said on NBC Sunday. “I played there 13 years. It was all about, ‘I don’t care how many playoff games you win. Are you going to win the Super Bowl?’ This team now is, ‘Are we going to win or are we going to just keep the game within two scores?’

“I think that’s the struggle right now. I don’t know where they turn to try to find answers to try to turn this season around. Their best bet might be ‘tank it’ or whatever you want to call it and get a great draft pick.’”

Rodney Harrison

Another former Patriots safety, Rodney Harrison, shared a similar sentiment as McCourty on NBC, noting that the current roster seems rudderless under Belichick. 

“These young players, they’re not listening to Coach Belichick. They don’t really understand the Patriot Way. It’s really foreign to them,” Harrison said. “Because Coach Belichick hasn’t forgotten how to coach. But when you start looking at their team, I don’t think it’s just a great, talented team. 

“Offensively, you look at the quarterback, he’s lost his confidence. The offensive line — I’m being nice when I say they’re average. And they just don’t have a run game. They don’t have a number one receiver. It’s just so many issues they have, and on the defensive side of the ball, they’re hurt. … “It’s just a bad football team.”

Adam Schefter

Based on Belichick’s postgame comments on Sunday, it appears as though Jones will start next weekend when New England heads to Las Vegas to take on the Raiders at Allegiant Stadium.

But speaking on the “Pat McAfee Show” on Monday, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter seemed to signal that greater changes are coming to New England’s offense.

“What Bill has said — Bill has said that he’s sticking with Mac. That he’s the one. I think everyone across the league looks at it and says, ‘Well, they’re gonna be doing something.’ What is it that they’re gonna be doing,” Schefter asked. “Because Bill Belichick is coming off maybe the two worst losses of his career in back-to-back weeks. The offense has been inept. It has not gotten the job done. So you know that they’re not gonna stand pat.

“That they’re gonna be doing something. So the question is, what is that? And Bill has said that he’s standing behind the quarterback for now. We’ve heard other head coaches say similar things before only to go a different route during the week. So, let’s see where that goes. But, look, I think it’s fair to say that, when they play the Las Vegas Raiders this week, that the offense isn’t going to look the same. What that means, we’ll find out as the week evolves.”

Rex Ryan

Bill Belichick’s comments on New England needing to “start all over” made waves following Sunday’s blowout loss.

Former Jets coach (and vocal Mac Jones critic) Rex Ryan gave his take on Belichick’s postgame prose 

“What he means is, ‘We got to do everything. We got to go back and identify who the hell we are. What are we going to be about? Are we going to be a running football team? Just throw it all over the lot? Who the hell are we?’ ” Ryan said on ESPN’s “Get Up” on Monday. “He’s never lost two games like that in his whole career. I mean, he’s getting smoked.

“To me, he’s going to get his staff together and say, ‘What can we do?’ Well, right now, I have no idea. You used to be able to run the football. That’s where it better start. You put it in this kid’s (Mac Jones) hands, it’s a disaster. It’s going to be a disaster.”

Shannon Sharpe

New England reaching rock bottom in 2023 prompted former tight end Shannon Sharpe to tip his cap to Tom Brady during Monday’s episode of “First Take” on ESPN.

“I think I owe Brady an apology, because I don’t think I gave him enough credit, or I should have given him even more credit, because what Brady allowed Coach (Bill) Belichick to do,” Sharpe said. “Brady is the largest eraser in pro sports. Because every mistake that Coach Belichick made during that two decades (in New England), Brady could erase it.

“You took a bad receiver; Brady would take a seventh-round receiver — a receiver that you took in the first or the second or the third round — and Brady would erase it with a Julian Edelman. Or you make a mistake on a defensive back, he would take somebody else and he could erase it.”

Dan Orlovsky 

While Mac Jones has received his fair share of criticism over the last 24 hours, former NFL QB Dan Orlovsky believes that New England’s struggles are more of a byproduct of other deficiencies across New England’s roster. 

“If Mac Jones was in San Francisco, he’d be playing like [49ers QB] Brock Purdy,” Orlovsky said.

Rex Ryan, as expected, disagreed. 

Oh, God, no,” the former Jets coach responded.