The Crows led by almost six goals midway through the second quarter but fell away completely in the second half, kicking just two goals to go down by 32 points.
Adelaide struggled to win the ball after the long break, losing the contested- possession count 42-25 in the second half.
The performance was a reversal of the Crows' effort against Fremantle last weekend, where they started the game slowly and finished well.
Adelaide is missing seven players from the team that overcame Hawthorn in round one and Craig said the inconsistent efforts over the past two weeks were a reflection of the inexperienced nature of the side.
"In the end we just got bulldozed out of the way. I thought we started well. Our first quarter-and-a-half was at the level we want to play at as a team, but then Port lifted as well and in the end we capitulated," he said.
"At the moment our capacity to maintain for four quarters is a fair way off, and it's [because of] the composition of our side at the moment. You're asking a lot of guys to play hardened AFL footy when some of them are just trying to survive.
"But we need to keep being very demanding, otherwise nothing happens and it becomes [a case of], 'We'll just wait until we get some players back'.
"We need to maximise this time and squeeze everything we can out of what we've got so that this is not just a wasted period of time."
Craig was optimistic Scott Stevens (illness), Michael Doughty (corked hamstring) and Richard Tambling (ankle) would all be available to play against Carlton at Etihad Stadium next weekend.
Defender Phil Davis' shoulder sprain is not as bad as first thought and he could also be included in the team as early as next week.
Ruckman Ivan Maric is under pressure to retain his spot.
Maric started the game on the interchange bench and was subbed off in the third quarter, with the Crows preferring the ruck combination of Kurt Tippett and Shaun McKernan.
Ex-Carlton recruit Sam Jacobs played his second game back from a hamstring strain in the SANFL on Friday night and Craig said the former rookie would be considered for selection.
"We need to look at the combination of all our talls. We've got Brad Moran and Sam Jacobs back playing now," he said.
"We just need to keep looking at it and we'll tinker with it. Kurt just needs to play more football. He was a bit better this week than he was last week -we're far from settled in that area."
Katrina Gill covers Adelaide news for afl.com.au. Follow her on Twitter: @AFL_KatrinaGill
