Just like most years, the New England Patriots have got off to another mediocre start. There is a plethora of reasons for it, but a big problem in the weeks two and three losses was that no one could get open for Brady. The win against the Dolphins looked a lot better, but it has been clear that something has been missing through the first four games.
Julian Edelman has served his four-game suspension and will play in his first game against the Indianapolis Colts. One thing to keep an eye on going forward is his footwork and his overall health. Of course, there is going to be some rust after being sidelined for a year and a quarter, but there is a big difference between being rusty and not being the same. Returning after an ACL tear is hard as it is, you never know if the player is going to trust their knee to make a cut or not. In this case, Edelman also was taking some form of PEDs, which might make it even harder since he now cannot be taking whatever he was before. 
The return of Edelman is going to change a lot for New England regardless of whether he is healthy or not. The threat of him being on the field forces opposing defense to keep a close eye on him, sometimes with two different defenders. If he is back to 100%, he is going to get open at ease, and will be great on third downs. No one in the NFL can get open faster than Edelman, and it is something that Brady has desperately been missing early on in the season. He has been Brady’s primary receiver ever since Wes Welker, left and is seen by many as the best receiver Brady has had in his career. His stats, obviously, are not going to be up to par in 2018 since he is only eligible for 12 games, but he will surely make a huge difference for the Patriots. 
If he is not close to a 100 percent and seemingly is not the same, he still will help out the offense. No matter what, he will be able to catch the ball and also will remain in Brady’s circle of trust. Therefore, defenses will not be able to pay as much attention to Rob Gronkowski anymore, which will leave Edelman more open as well. Defenses will then try to scheme a way to tightly defend the both of them, opening things up for Josh Gordon. In his New England debut against Miami, Gordon caught two passes over the middle on third down. That proves two things; he is not afraid to take a hit in traffic, and he also is trusted by Brady. Only certain players are thrown to on third down, so it is great to see that Brady already feels comfortable going to him. If Gronk and Edelman are covered, Gordon could really do some damage going forward. Julian Edelman is going to bring the offense exactly what it has been lacking and, will put them back on track.