The New England Patriots sank to a new low in a 15-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins in Sunday's Week 5 game at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots offense again struggled to do much of anything. The passing attack failed to tally 200-plus yards for the fifth time in five games. The offense failed to score more than one touchdown for the fourth time in five games, bringing its per-game average to 12.4 points, which is the second-lowest in the NFL.
The offensive line has allowed the highest pressure rate (46.2 percent) and the third-highest sack rate (11.7 percent) through five weeks. Penalties also were a huge problem versus the Dolphins as the Patriots were flagged 12 times for 105 yards.
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It's fair to wonder if the Patriots might make a quarterback change and give rookie Drake Maye his first ever start in Week 6. How much longer can they continue with Jacoby Brissett as the starting quarterback when the on-field product is so lackluster?
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Even though it looks really bad for the Patriots right now, there is one positive aspect of this situation: their current standing in the order for the 2025 NFL Draft.
The Patriots hold the No. 1 overall pick after five weeks. They are one of six teams with a 1-4 record, but they hold the top spot because their strength of schedule is the weakest of those teams.
Here's the order of the top 10, as of Monday, Oct. 7 (via Tankathon):
1. New England Patriots, 1-4 (.434 strength of schedule)
2. Cincinnati Bengals, 1-4 (.481)
3. Jacksonville Jaguars, 1-4 (.506)
4. Cleveland Browns, 1-4 (.506)
5. Los Angeles Rams, 1-4 (.512)
6. Carolina Panthers, 1-4 (.518)
7. Tennessee Titans, 1-3 (.518)
8. Miami Dolphins, 2-3 (.405)
9. New York Jets, 2-3 (464)
10. Las Vegas Raiders, 2-3 (.488)
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Three of those six 1-4 teams are the Cincinnati Bengals, Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns, and they should improve in the near future. Those are not awful teams. Same for the Tennessee Titans, who are 1-3 on a bye week.
But the Jacksonville Jaguars and Carolina Panthers are actually bad. That said, the Jaguars could potentially improve, and they play in a weak AFC South division. The Panthers, meanwhile, should be near the bottom of the standings all season, and you could make a strong case that they will be the Patriots' toughest competition for the No. 1 pick.
The Patriots could keep the No. 1 pick -- assuming they get it -- but trading down might make the most sense since the franchise doesn't need a quarterback after selecting Drake Maye at No. 3 overall in 2024. New England should prioritize an offensive tackle early in the 2025 draft, and there are a couple of them, including Kelvin Banks Jr. of Texas and Will Campbell of LSU, who project to be top 10 picks.
The rest of the season likely will be a painful experience for Patriots fans, but there should be some hope on the horizon in the form of another top 10 pick in the 2025 draft.