The Patriots have an obvious problem.

Four games into the season and the team still hasn’t settled on their right tackle position and it’s negatively impacting the offense. In the first two games, Calvin Anderson started and lost his spot after allowing five quarterback hits and a sack. Vederian Lowe has taken over and the young tackle has allowed two sacks and a quarterback hit.

According to Pro Football Focus, Lowe is ranked 69 out of 71 eligible tackles with a 41.0 PFF grade. Anderson is ranked 67 with a 44.6 grade. In two starts, Pro Football Focus has Lowe down for 20 pressures allowed and Anderson with nine allowed.

Right tackle is the Patriots biggest concern, but it looks like help is on the way.

Veteran Riley Reiff returned to practice on Wednesday after starting the season on the injured reserve with a knee injury. Reiff is the team’s second-highest paid tackle behind Trent Brown and his veteran presence is certainly needed.

“Riley’s been a great teammate all spring and all summer. Veteran guy,” center David Andrews said. “Another Iowa guy, but really enjoyed having Riley’s perspective, presence out there. Obviously unfortunate what happened and that’s part of it. He can do a lot for us. I love the way he puts the team first – playing guard this summer. He’s a 12-year veteran, only played tackle, and now played guard. Really respect that about him. He can help our football team.”

Reiff was brought in to compete for the Patriots starting job at right tackle, but his offseason didn’t go as planned. It appeared as though he was passed on the depth chart by Conor McDermott, who was later cut. At the time, Reiff was moved to right guard as the Patriots didn’t have starters Michael Onwenu (ankle) or Cole Strange (knee).

Reiff brings 149 career starts as an offensive tackle to the Patriots. This summer marked his first time playing guard. That’s one reason why he was playing in the Patriots preseason finale where Reiff suffered a knee injury.

The Patriots desperately need someone to step in and provide a consistent presence at right tackle. The team heads into this latest matchup with the New Orleans Saints ranked last in pass protection, according to ESPN’s pass block win rate.

Last season, for Chicago, Reiff had a 64.3 grade from PFF, which is a lot better than Lowe and Anderson’s current grades. The hope is that Reiff can step in and help elevate his teammates.

“Good competitor. He’s coming back, just getting back into it, he hasn’t played in a bit,” Patriots defensive tackle Lawrence Guy said of Reiff. “It’s one of those things where he’s getting comfortable being back out there. I’ve been in those shoes before… I think he’s a great competitor, has been able to learn the playbook, works hard. He wants to lift up his brothers.

“I think that’s a big thing about understanding where we’re at. We’ve had a couple of injuries, we have people coming back from injury. This is when you protect your brother next to you. You lift him up and carry him. We’re going to work with it.”

J.C. JACKSON, who returned to the Patriots on Wednesday after a trade with th Chargers, turned himself in to Attleboro District Court on Thursday. Authorities had issued an arrest warrant for him after failed to appear in court to face traffic charges.

Jackson in 2021, when he was previously a member of the Patriots, allegedly was driving 100 mph down Route 1 in South Attleboro, Massachusetts. After Jackson turned himself in on Thursday, he paid a $600 fine for the reckless driving and speeding charges.

The Patriots’ defender now has one week to complete a reckless driving course, which can be done online. If he completes the four-hour course by next Friday, the driving to endanger charge will be tossed.

• Jackson was practicing on Thursday afternoon in a new No. 29 uniform. The cornerback wore No. 27 during his first stint in Foxborough, but that number now belongs to Myles Bryant.

He was chatting with owner Robert Kraft on the sideline before the session began.

“(Jackson) showed up in a blazer today,” Lawrence Guy told reporters before practice. “I was like, ‘Wassup, my man! I haven’t seen you in a while.’ But it’s good. He’s back here. We know he’s going to bring a lot to the team. And it’s good to see a familiar face in the locker room. With a lot of new people coming in, a lot of people going out, it’s good to see somebody else come back in that we know that knows the system.

“So, he’s going to be able to come back in at full speed, not that big of an adjustment from when he left to what it is now.”

BEING SO THIN at cornerback, the Patriots defense would certainly benefit from a Jack Jones return, but they’re still a couple of weeks away from that happening.

Jones has been on injured reserve since the start of the season with a hamstring injury. He was eligible to come off IR after New England’s Week 4 loss, but it doesn’t appear that’s going to happen.

Jones is expected to be away for at least two more weeks away, according to The Athletic’s Jeff Howe. ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported last week that a midseason return for Jones would be more likely than a Week 5 one.

Jones was not spotted at Thursday’s practice.

Cornerbacks Jack Jones, Marcus Jones (torn labrum) and Jonathan Jones all dealing with injuries. Christian Gonzalez is expected to miss the remainder of the season with a torn labrum and dislocated shoulder after a stellar start to his rookie year.

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