What to watch for when an even more desperate Patriots teams visits Raiders in Week 6

FOXBORO --  The Patriots are coming off two straight embarrassing losses, and now they head to the site of last season's most embarrassing loss. What could possibly go wrong?

A lot, it would seem. The 2-3 Raiders are the kind of team we circled ahead of the season as a team the 2023 Patriots should beat, but now it doesn't feel like the Patriots can beat anyone.

At 1-4, the Patriots need to win this game to keep the season afloat. Because after the Raiders, New England has a home game against the Bills and a road tilt in Miami. Lose this weekend, and a 1-7 start to the season is very much on the table.

That must really make you want to watch this weekend's game. And if you do decide to spend another Sunday afternoon watching the Patriots, here are the storylines to keep an eye on throughout.

How long will Mac Jones last in this one?

Mac has been benched in each of the last two weeks because he keeps giving the ball to the other team. At least only three of his five turnovers were returned for touchdowns, otherwise we could be talking about the Patriots having a 70-burger hung on them like the Denver Broncos a few weeks ago. (See, it could be worse!)

The Patriots are sticking with Jones, because they really don't have any other option. And it probably wouldn't matter who is standing back there behind this offensive line; just about any quarterback would put up a total of 16 points over the last three weeks with less than a second to operate.

But Jones is going to be on a short leash on Sunday. Another fumble, another terrible pitch to a running back, another pick-six, or even just your run of the mill interception could spell the end of Mac Jones as quarterback of the New England Patriots.

No pressure, eh? By the way, he's going to have to look halfway decent against a fairly solid secondary that is keeping opposing teams under 200 passing yards per week (197.2 yards per game, ranking 11th in the NFL) despite a lack of star power. And Jones is going to have to do so with a depleted receiving corps, against a head coach that knows him pretty well in Josh McDaniels.

We're trying to stay positive and imagine a way where the Patriots' offense looks good and doesn't lose this game. But our imagination isn't that good, it would appear.

Maybe this is the week the run game gets going

At some point, the New England run game will get going. We think. This would be a great weekend for it, much like the last five weeks.

While Rhamondre Stevenson would love to forget the events that transpired the last time the Patriots went to Las Vegas, he actually had himself a day at Allegiant Stadium. Stevenson was a monster that afternoon, rushing for 172 yards on 19 carries -- good for over nine yards per carry. That included a 34-yard touchdown scamper that gave New England a 24-17 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Through five weeks this season, Stevenson has 188 rushing yards, total. He's averaging just 2.8 yards per carry. This is not the output the Patriots want from their best playmaker on offense. Ezekiel Elliott has not been much better, either, averaging just 3.8 yards whenever he gets the ball.

This weekend, the duo will face a Raiders defense that is allowing 129.4 rushing yards per game, which ranks 23rd in the NFL. The Raiders can be beat on the ground, and getting the rush attack going would work wonders for Jones and company. (It's been a while, so you'll be forgiven if you forgot that New England's last touchdown came off a play-action pass.)

Of course to run the ball well, the offensive line has to hold up their end of the bargain.

Who is going to block Maxx Crosby?

The O-line has been abysmal the last two weeks. Jones has had no time, and even when he does have some room to operate, his mind is playing tricks on him because of the trauma he's suffered because of the ineffective line so far this season. It's a big reason why he's made so many mistakes these last two weeks.

Now the line is going to have to deal with Maxx Crosby coming off the edge, keeping one of the league's best pass rushers out of Jones' face. Crosby has five sacks already this season, and is on his way toward surpassing his career-best of 12.5 sacks last season. 

Watch out for this tattooed quarterback cruncher. He could ruin New England's afternoon in a hurry.

Something out of Thornton?

Tyquan Thornton's return couldn't come at a better time. JuJu Smith-Schuster and Demario Douglas are both most certainly going to miss this weekend after suffering concussions last week, leaving New England incredibly thin at receiver.

Thornton isn't going to add any size or bulk to Mac Jones' arsenal, but he's going to add another element of speed. Hopefully some separation too, since no one in the receiving corps can create any space. 

There is a lot of hype and hope around the 2022 second-round pick, who has started both of his NFL seasons on IR. On a team that can't seem to score touchdowns the conventional way, having a player with some blazing speed could help the offense get a little creative as they desperately try to put up points and win a football game.

Tune in to Patriots-Raiders on WBZ-TV -- the television home of the New England Patriots. Coverage continues Friday with Patriots All Access at 7pm on WBZ. Pregame coverage begins Sunday morning at 11:30am with Patriots GameDay, the Pats and the Raiders will kick off just after 4pm, and after the game tune in to Patriots 5th Quarter on TV38!