Coach Paul Roos faces the task of reviving his team after saying the weekend's loss may in part be a result of playing against three top sides in a row.

Roos said nothing new could be taken from the weekend's defeat and coaching staff had discussed with players the defeats to Sydney and Fremantle.

But this week the focus has been on refreshing them before they play the Bulldogs, who they did not beat in 2014.

The team has been training off-site and ate lunch together as a group.

The Dees have achieved the fewest inside-50s compared with their opponents this year and the lowest average game score of the competition.

Roos said most players were living in the here-and-now and focused on the next game.

But he was aware that for some long-time Melbourne team members, suffering yet another huge defeat may open old wounds.

"It's something I touch on with them, make sure they're OK," he said.

"We've got to be aware of that senior group, that core group that have been here for a long time, it's part of my job as coach to monitor them and make sure that's not an issue."

Dees fans too would be forgiven for feeling fatigued with the team's shocking start to the season. Melbourne have finished in the bottom five positions on the ladder for the past five years.

On average they have scored 66 points a game this season according to Champion Data, a measure which put them dead last of all the AFL teams.

In 2014, Champion Data found Melbourne on average had 12 fewer inside-50s than their opponents in each game.

This year, the Dees have averaged 17 fewer inside-50s.

Roos said the players had tried to open up their offence at the weekend, but that had left them vulnerable.

"That's probably part of the transition for us, if you are trying to be more bold with the ball movement, your turnovers become more obvious," he said.

Roos said Jack Watts, the former no.1 draft pick once hailed as a potential saviour of the club, had played well in the reserves and was feeling more positive this week after taking the unusual step of demoting himself.

"What the weekend showed is that we need Jack Watts playing, we need him playing well because he gives us something that we don't have, and that's an incredible footy IQ, really good skills, a really good decision maker," the coach said.

Gun forward Jesse Hogan will be ready to return for the clash with the Bulldogs.

Hogan missed the match against Hawthorn with general soreness, but is fine now, Roos said.

But young defender Christian Salem was likely to miss another three or four weeks with a hamstring injury.