It’s hard to believe at this point, but there was once hope for this 2-8 Patriots team.

The 2023 Patriots faced a difficult schedule in a seemingly loaded AFC East, but there was reason for optimism after Bill Belichick made significant changes to his coaching staff over the offseason.

Instead, the Patriots have hit rock bottom this season, and Belichick’s future with the team seems tenuous. So, let’s recap everything that has not gone according to plan through 11 weeks.

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1. Mac Jones’ rebound

It would have been difficult to predict Jones being worse this season than he performed in 2022, but that has been the reality. Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien was supposed to fix Jones, and now the 2021 first-round pick isn’t even guaranteed to start Week 12 against the Giants. Jones has already been benched three times as he’s continued his decline. O’Brien has brought some modernity to the Patriots’ offense, but it has not helped Jones’ decision-making.

2. Bill O’Brien didn’t settle offense

The Patriots have increased their usage of play action and RPOs as O’Brien has replaced Matt Patricia and Joe Judge as the team’s top offensive mind, but the offense has moved from 24th in expected points added (EPA) per play in 2022 to 29th in 2023.

3. Rhamondre Stevenson’s continued ascent

There are extenuating factors involved, but Stevenson has not been the same running back this season. His yards after contact per attempt has dropped from 3.81 in 2022 to 2.66 this season. He had 15 carries of 15-plus yards last season and just two so far in 2023. He’s forced just 20 missed tackles this season compared to 40 in 2022.

4. JuJu Smith-Schuster replacing Jakobi Meyers

The Patriots believed that free-agent addition Smith-Schuster could be better than the departing Meyers, and that plan has outright failed.

Meyers was the Patriots’ most dependable wide receiver for three seasons, and before injuries ravaged the group, Smith-Schuster had been benched for Kendrick Bourne and rookie Demario Douglas. Smith-Schuster has just 22 catches for 149 yards with one touchdown in his first season with the Patriots. Meyers has caught 46 passes for 512 yards with five touchdowns in his first season with the Raiders. He had 235 receptions for 2,758 yards with eight touchdowns in four seasons with the Patriots.

5. The Tyquan Thornton pick

It’s probably premature to call Thornton a bust, but it’s trending that way for the speedy 2022 second-round pick out of Baylor. He began his second straight season on injured reserve and has caught just three passes for 15 yards while seeing his playing time diminished for Douglas, Smith-Schuster, Kayshon Boutte, Jalen Reagor and DeVante Parker.

6. A Mike Gesicki bounceback

The Patriots signed Gesicki, who was franchise tagged with the Dolphins last season, to a one-year, $4.5 million contract with another $4.5 million available in incentives. It looked like a smart contract at the time, but he’s not a great fit for the offense and being misused as a run blocker. The undersized wide receiver/tight end is playing the highest percentage of run block snaps in his career. The Patriots have also struggled to get production out of tight end Hunter Henry since the first two weeks of the season.

7. The initial (lack of a) plan at right tackle

The Patriots signed Riley Reiff and Calvin Anderson and drafted Sidy Sow hoping that one of those three players could start at right tackle. Reiff was almost immediately demoted, Anderson dealt with an illness all summer, and Sow was moved back to guard for Week 1.

Trading for Vederian Lowe and Tyrone Wheatley didn’t work out, so the Patriots moved Mike Onwenu from right guard to tackle about seven weeks too late.

8. Injury luck

The Patriots’ defense looked like it had the potential to be a top unit in the NFL until they lost outside linebacker Matthew Judon and cornerback Christian Gonzalez — arguably their best two players — in the same week. It certainly hurts to have Marcus Jones and Daniel Ekuale on IR, as well.

9. Replacing Gonzalez

After Gonzalez suffered his season-ending injury, the Patriots acquired J.C. Jackson in a trade with the Chargers, hoping that him, Jack Jones, Jonathan Jones and Myles Bryant could still make a formidable cornerback group. Jackson didn’t travel to Germany in Week 10 for personal reasons and Jack Jones was waived during the bye week. That’s led to a lot of playing time in recent weeks for Bryant, Shaun Wade and Jonathan Jones.

10. Replacing Devin McCourty

There seems to be more miscommunication than usual for the Patriots this season as they attempted to place Devin McCourty by committee. Jabrill Peppers has played well in an increased role, but Adrian Phillips, Jalen Mills and Marte Mapu have been non-factors. Kyle Dugger also hasn’t been making as many big plays this season as he’s seen his role at free safety increase.