The club escaped with a win over Gold Coast on Saturday night to make it three consecutive victories to open the season, but forward Michael Hurley said the Bombers had been "lucky" so far.
"I don't think we're playing super football at the moment," Hurley said on Monday.
"There still is a lot of improvement [needed] and we've just been lucky enough to get away with a couple of wins which is always nice.
"If we can play the way we want to play, then we'll start playing a lot better footy."
As well as a long and growing injury list, the Bombers have shown inconsistent form in each of their wins over North Melbourne, Port Adelaide and the Suns.
They sit fourth on the ladder, behind premiership hopefuls West Coast, Carlton and the Sydney Swans, as the only unbeaten teams.
But Hurley said the win-loss ratio flattered how the club was playing so far, and the Dons needed to tighten up in some areas.
"I think it does [flatter us] a touch," he said.
"It's just the consistency of the structures and the set ups and just getting the small things right.
"I think we've just drifted away from that at times through games and it's really cost us. If we can get the little things right we'll definitely improve."
Essendon's return from the Gold Coast was delayed on Sunday after the Virgin plane the players were on was forced to land at Brisbane airport.
The players only arrived back in Melbourne on Sunday evening, but Hurley said it shouldn't hamper their recovery before Saturday's clash with Carlton.
It is Essendon's first meeting with the Blues since being thumped in last year's elimination final, and Hurley said it was important to give a better performance.
"No one likes to lose in that way and we'll try to rectify that as much as we can and play some good footy," Hurley said.
Callum Twomey is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter at @AFL_CalTwomey.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs.
