Brad Scott has lamented a horrid start and put the heat on Essendon's more experienced players after Fremantle equalled a club record.
Former Essendon rookie Patrick Voss dined out on his old side, kicking five goals as the Dockers won by 43 points in wet and dreary conditions on Sunday at the MCG.
The 16.8 (104) to 8.13 (61) win was Fremantle's ninth-straight, equalling their best AFL streak.
Underscoring the challenge facing the rebuilding Bombers, the crowd of 25,100 marked only the second time since 1995 the club has attracted less than 30,000 to the MCG, not including Covid years.
Fremantle opened by waltzing clear for goals from the first two centre clearances.
They were 25 points up after the first quarter and coach Scott was furious at the break, only to see the Dockers extend their margin to 52 points by halftime.
Essendon eventually stopped the rot, outscoring Fremantle in the second half, but the damage was done.
Fresh from last week's Rising Star nomination, Sullivan Robey shone again for Essendon in the gloom with two goals and six inside 50s.
"I can reluctantly - not even accept - but reluctantly understand where we're not at the level we need to be in a lot of parts of the game," Scott said.
"But the contest is the non-negotiable part of it and that was just in the first quarter nowhere near where it needed to be.
"You shouldn't be, as a team, looking to your 18-year-olds to lead you out of that (the first half).
"The sky's the limit for where these guys can get to, but right now we need more support around our young players, which sounds a little bit back-to-front, doesn't it?"
Asked about the poor crowd, Scott was vigorous in his defence of Essendon's rebuild.
"Our fans are incredible - it's a putrid day today," Scott said of Sunday's Melbourne weather.
"The last three years, they see the players we've brought in.
"Your fans want to come to the game to see their team win. But if you scratch one layer deeper, Blind Freddy can see what we're trying to do.
"It's frustrating in the short term, but we've tried to patch this together in the past - we're not doing that again."
Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir had his own frustrations, given his side led by more than eight goals at halftime.
"Give them (Essendon) the credit they deserve ... it's hard to control four quarters in modern-day football," he said.
But Essendon were kept to 1.8 in the first half, while Voss let the Bombers fans know all about it as the man known as the Prancing Pony kicked four goals in the second term.
As the Dockers continued their outstanding start to the season, the Bombers returned to the MCG for the first time since they had such high hopes for the Anzac Day clash against Collingwood.
Essendon were terrible in the blockbuster and were again poor defensively against the Dockers in the first half.
They are 1-9, and seven of their losses have featured 100-plus scores for the opposition.
Clearances were 14 apiece at halftime, but Fremantle had kicked 5.3 from them compared to nothing from the Bombers.
Shai Bolton continued his excellent form, amassing 24 possessions and kicking two goals, while fellow on-ballers Caleb Serong and Andrew Brayshaw also shone in the gloom.
Murphy Reid had a team-high 29 possessions for the Dockers and seven inside-50s, also kicking a goal.
Fremantle small forward Isaiah Dudley, who snapped a superb goal in the first quarter, was crunched in a tackle and limped off in the second term but was able to return.
