The preseason is over for the Patriots, and that might not be a good thing. New England lost to the Las Vegas Raiders, 23-6, on Friday night. The Patriots played their starters for the opening few drives on each side of the ball, but didn't do much to lessen any concerns fans or the media have had about the team in recent weeks.

“This is going to happen, unfortunately, in this league,” Patriots center and captain David Andrews said. “You've got to flush it and move on. You can't let one bad Sunday turn into another bad Sunday and turn into another bad Sunday. You've got to move on. It's relatively quick in this league because you come in Monday to get that stuff corrected.”

Here are nine instant observations from the Patriots' loss.

The Patriots' first-team offense struggled for much of their four drives

Las Vegas rested its starters, so New England should have had an advantage by playing its starters for the first quarter-plus on Friday, right? Wrong.

The Patriots' first-team offense was dominated by the Raiders second- and third-team defense for much of the four drives they were out there. Their opening series was a three-and-out. A stretch run on 2nd-and-two resulted in a four-yard loss. Then, Mac Jones was sacked for a 13-yard loss on third down with no receivers able to get open.

New England appeared like it was going to have another three-and-out on its second drive. A hold on first down put them in a hole, but Jones scrambled for a 13-yard gain on 3rd-and-10 for the first. However, Jones threw an interception four plays later as he didn't see Raiders linebacker Luke Masterson on a pass to Kendrick Bourne.

The Patriots went three-and-out again on their third drive, falling a yard short of the line to gain. New England's top unit moved the ball on the fourth dive, though it came against Las Vegas's third stringers. A Mac Jones touchdown pass to DeVante Parker was negated because of an offensive pass interference and the Patriots eventually had to settle for a field goal.

A common theme through much of those four drives was that Jones was under duress. He was pressured at least once on all four drives, with his interception coming on the move as he couldn't see over right tackle Isaiah Wynn, who blocked his view of Masterson. Poor separation from the Patriots' receivers following the Parker pass interference call led to Jones dealing with pressure, too, forcing him to throw the ball away.

Outside runs fail, but the inside rushes had some success. 

Of the three stretch runs the Patriots ran with the first team, two of them ended in rushes for a loss and a third resulted in a penalty. Right guard Michael Onwenu had poor blocking on one of the tackles for loss and was called for the holding.

The inside rushes worked though for New England. Rhamondre Stevenson had 11 yards on two inside carries. Ty Montgomery had four yards on an inside rush while J.J. Taylor had three yards on an inside rush while working with the first team. Damien Harris didn't play on Friday.

Mac Jones threw well on the plays that he had a clean pocket

Jones did well when he wasn't under duress on Friday. He went 8-of-9 on passes where he wasn't under pressure.

The only problem was that seven of those nine passes came on a shotgun formation and all but two of the completions were on relatively quick strikes.

There were a few impressive throws made by Mac Jones throughout the evening. He hit Nelson Agholor on a crossing route for a 13-yard gain. On a fourth down play, Jones completed a pass into a tight window to Bourne for a 12-yard pickup. Later on the same drive, Jones stepped up in the pocket to complete a 16-yard pass to Hunter Henry.

Jones' pass to Parker in the end zone was also a good indication that the two have chemistry on jump ball, 1-on-1 situations on the outside. Jones perfectly placed the ball on Parker's back shoulder.

Jones finished 9-of-13 for 71 yards though.

Patriots starting defense loses to the team's former backup quarterback

Jarrett Stidham and the Raiders' second unit scored on both drives they went up against the Patriots' starting defense.

On Las Vegas' third play of the game, Stidham was able to complete a pass that went for 30 yards because safety Kyle Dugger was out of place in zone coverage. Dugger saved himself a bit later in the drive, recording a stuff on Zamir White's third-down run, forcing the Raiders to kick a field goal.

Mac Jones' interception didn't do the Patriots' defense any favors for their second drive because the Raiders started at New England's 32-yard line. But the unit didn't do itself any favors, either. Stidham completed a 20-yard pass on the third play of the drive. Two plays later, White ran into the end zone untouched because linebacker Josh Uche was unable to set the edge, playing the inside instead of the outside.

The top defensive unit was able to force a three-and-out on its third drive, but that came against Las Vegas' third-string offense. Stidham ended up completing 4-of-6 passes for 72 yards.

A few linebackers stand out for the Patriots though

Despite the poor showing from the top unit, there were a few positives from the Patriots' defense.

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Raekwon McMillan made a pair of strong solo tackles on back-to-back plays. First, he got a run stuff on a Brittain Brown run up the middle. A play later, McMillan tackled Brown on a screen pass, grabbing the running back by his ankle to pull him down.

Mack Wilson continues to make his presence known all over the field. He finished with six tackles (five solo), chasing down a quarterback run on one play and getting into the backfield for a stuff on a fourth down run by the Raiders.

Anferenee Jennings had a sack and a pressure, continuing to build off the strong training camp and preseason he's had entering his third season.

Ty Montgomery gets carted off, allowing a pair of roster bubble candidates to potentially earn a spot

On top of the poor showing, the Patriots might have lost their multi-purpose running back on Friday night. Montgomery was carted off following an inside rush in the first quarter and didn't return.

Taylor got five touches in Montgomery's absence, finishing with seven rushing yards on three carries and 22 yards on two receptions. Sixth-round rookie Kevin Harris busted out a 33-yard run, but fumbled on his final carry of the night. If Montgomery's out for some time, either Taylor or Harris will likely end up on the roster.

Fourth-round rookie Pierre Strong, who's likely to be on the roster, recorded two receptions for 13 yards and had four rushing yards on two carries.

A pair of Patriots rookies were arguably their players of the game

Fourth-round corner Jack Jones continued to shine against fellow backups on Friday. He had a pair of pass break-ups in the second half. On a third down for the Raiders, Jones delivered a nice pop Raiders running back Austin Walker, forcing a fumble that went out of bounds.

Undrafted free-agent defensive tackle DeMarcus Mitchell got into the backfield a few times in the second half, recording a couple of pressures and a tackle. The Patriots' broadcast made sure to point Mitchell's strong performance over the last couple of weeks in the preseason as he makes one last push to make the roster.

Veteran corner stumbles 

Terrance Mitchell didn't have much playing time on Friday, but he allowed the biggest play of the night. Raiders receiver Tyrell Williams torched him in 1-on-1 coverage, catching a deep ball that floated in the air for 45 yards. Mitchell appeared to be upset with the lack of safety help on the play.

With the strong play of the Patriots' younger corners this preseason, Mitchell's been viewed as a possible cut candidate come Tuesday. He didn't help his case on Friday if he is one.

Bailey Zappe throws another bad interception

The Patriots' backup rookie quarterback to Mac Jones has had a roller coaster of a preseason, making plays with his legs at times while also having some ugly throws. Zappe might have had his worst throw of the preseason on Friday, overthrowing his receiver as the ball landed in former Patriots receiver Isaiah Zuber's hands.

Zappe finished 10-of-14 for 84 yards.