FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Short-term thoughts and notes surrounding the New England Patriots and the NFL:

1. The pressure is increasing: One obvious question has emerged as the most critical one the Patriots must answer ahead of Sunday’s home game against the Miami Dolphins (1 p.m. ET, Fox).

Can you reduce the pressure?

According to ESPN Research, the Patriots are allowing 45.9% pressure in their 1-3 start. If that continues all season, it would easily be the highest pressure rate allowed since ESPN began tracking the statistic 16 years ago.

The 2018 Houston Texans (42.4%), 2014 Seattle Seahawks (41%) and 2022 Chicago Bears (39.5%) posted the highest pressure rate allowed. Over that same period, only one team – the 2022 Bears – has allowed more pressure (48%) in the first four games of a season than the 2024 Patriots.

Veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett was under fire too often; the statisticians in the game recorded 40 hits against him. And although head coach Jerod Mayo and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt say otherwise, it’s hard to imagine they aren’t under pressure as they consider when to turn to rookie quarterback Drake Maye, the No. 3 pick in the draft.

The Patriots started four different offensive line combinations in their first four games – due to injuries and the failure to sign veteran free agent Chukwuma Okora – and will introduce a fifth against the Dolphins after losing center David Andrews to what is expected to be shoulder surgery the case will end its season.

While Van Pelt was careful not to make excuses, he acknowledged, “It makes it difficult, but that’s the challenge we face this week.”

Brissett expects the Dolphins to test the Patriots to see if they have found answers.

“Teams will put us under pressure, we are very aware of that,” he said. “So now it’s about how we can respond to it, combat it and move forward.”

Team sources hope things eventually calm down, with the possible returns of left tackle Vederian Lowe (knee) and left guard Michael Jordan (ankle) on Sunday helping matters. Five-year veteran Nick Leverett is expected to fill in for Andrews, and coaches have considered several options on the right side of the line, including Mike Onwenu (160th of 161 eligible linemen in pass block win percentage), moving from tackle to guard.

Offensive coach Scott Peters said it is the team’s hope to move Onwenu to the right side permanently, but that depends on what they have available at tackle. If that happens this week, it would likely mean first-year player Demontrey Jacobs is the top right tackle.

Patriots OL coach Scott Peters says the team would ultimately like to see Mike Onwenu back at RG.

“In a perfect world, Mike is a guard – really physical. He can play tackle. In this way, he is a rare athlete who can move. But if it were up to you, you’d like to see Mike as a guard… pic.twitter.com/bvG9bUtV0V

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) October 4, 2024

Then there’s the issue of pass catchers getting open. The Patriots have the least productive wide receiver group in the NFL in receptions (29) and receiving yards (230). The 230 receiving yards by wide receivers are 157 fewer than any other team and the fewest by any team’s wide receivers in the first four games since the 2008 Browns.

Part of that has to do with the struggles of the offensive line, but in the times that Brissett has had time to survey the field, there aren’t always open targets. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, the Patriots were under pressure 51.6% of the time when Brissett had 2.5 seconds or more with the ball.

Of course, there are also times when Brissett can discharge more quickly, which ties into Van Pelt’s argument that “it takes all 11 to be successful.”

But there’s no question where it all starts for the Patriots – on the offensive line.

“We were not satisfied with the production and performance, everyone is aware of that,” said Peters. “For our development with the guys we have there, they are working hard and improving. If we can keep the guys healthy and provide continuity then we will definitely see progress.”

2. Gibson’s mindset: Fifth-year running back Antonio Gibson will start ahead of Rhamondre Stevenson, with Mayo saying degrading Stevenson (fumbles in each of the first four games) will give the team a stronger message about the importance of ball security. Gibson focuses on staying within himself.

“Just keep doing what I was doing and don’t let the moment get too big. I don’t treat it any differently, even though there might be more reps,” said Gibson, who played 71 snaps compared to Stevenson’s 159.

Gibson’s locker is two stalls away from Stevenson. He expressed his support for him and acknowledged that he went through a similar series of blunders early in his career with Washington, while encouraging him to stay away from social media.

3. Third-Down Issues: The Patriots defense ranks 31st on third downs, with opponents converting first downs 51.8% of the time. This is a significant decrease from 2023, when they finished seventh in the NFL (36.2%). Coordinator DeMarcus Covington said they were self-inflicted wounds because of a mismatch in rushing and coverage.

Regarding the rush, which has too often allowed quarterbacks to get out of the pocket, Covington said: “I don’t think we win the one-on-one rush. We’re coming back there. …But it’s the trap rush as a unit. You have to break down as a unit and set a trap.

As one defender said, the Patriots’ goal this week was to make “four (rushers) equal one.”

Conversely, the Dolphins are the NFL’s No. 1 defense on third down, with their opponents converting 23.8% of the time.

4. Maye update: Quarterbacks coach TC McCartney said Friday that their rookie quarterback is “right where we expected him to be” at this point and noted he continues to improve. As for when the Patriots might ultimately turn to Maye — assuming Brissett continues to recover from some or the tough hits he took — the coaches are keeping that part of their oft-cited “development plan” secret.

Mayo may have dropped a hint last week when he mentioned that the team’s only win, a 16-10 decision over the Bengals in Week 1, was “untenable” since the team needs to be able to win more than 16 Score points regularly. So if the points don’t rise in the next few weeks, that could be the trigger for change.

5. Safety squeeze: The Patriots were dangerously lacking in practice last week with Kyle Dugger (ankle) sidelined and co-starter Jabrill Peppers (shoulder) limited and coming into the week feeling like his health hadn’t improved as much as he would have liked. Peppers had a similar experience in Week 1 against Cincinnati and was desperate to play, so he was hoping for a similar event, but it didn’t happen (he was ruled out Saturday).

So the return of second-year safety/linebacker Marte Mapu from injured reserve comes at an important time for the Patriots. Covington, the defensive coordinator, said, “He’s a smart player, the way he prepares is like a coach in the classroom.” He’s been like this since I had him at the Senior Bowl. Mapu, a 2023 third-round pick from Sacramento State, is one of the candidates who could slide into the starting lineup.

6. They said it: “Everyone thought it could be a lot more creative. I don’t think you see a lot of creativity because it’s difficult to make the balls fly in different ways – you get kicks in the middle, right, left and so on. And because it’s very fast, it’s for your team difficult to adapt because you are only five meters away from the opponent. That’s why the most important thing for me is to keep things simple. Be good at being simple. – Patriots special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer on early impressions of the NFL’s new kickoff rule

7. Hunter’s new meeting: After tight end Hunter Henry was named captain last week after the Patriots lost Andrews to a likely season-ending shoulder injury, his schedule got a little busier Thursday afternoon. The weekly captains’ meeting with Mayo takes place on Thursdays at 3:30 p.m., a change from previous years when it used to be Friday mornings.

8. Pharms Gesture: Almost every player has someone to thank for their unwavering support throughout their career path, and Patriots second-year defensive lineman Jeremiah Pharms Jr. shared one of his most influential supporters as he arrived at last week’s game against the 49ers. Pharms wore a hoodie commemorating the life of his uncle Eugene Darden.

“It was a very meaningful moment for me because he was a die-hard 49ers fan and always believed in me,” said Pharms, whose path to the NFL included stops at Sacramento City College, Delta Junior College, Friends University and others Wichita Force of the Champions Indoor Football League and Pittsburgh Maulers of the USFL.

9. No. 1 pick?: Sunday’s game between the Dolphins (21%) and the Patriots (17%) features the teams with the current best odds of picking first in the 2025 NFL Draft, according to ESPN Analytics. ESPN draft analyst Field Yates rates Colorado receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter as the No. 1 prospect and Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. as the No. 4 prospect, which is notable considering receiver and offensive tackle are two of the The Patriots’ most important needs are.

10. Did you know?: The Patriots, looking to avoid a 1-4 start for their second straight season, have not started 1-4 or worse in consecutive seasons since 1992-93.