MELBOURNE captain Nathan Jones has never seen a young player dominate in the AFL like teammate Jesse Hogan.

Hogan was instrumental in the Demons' 39-point win over the Western Bulldogs, booting three goals to go with 21 disposals and nine marks.

"I compared him to Jonathan Brown and I'm pretty happy with that call at the moment," Jones said on Monday.

"For a young kid to come in like he has, I haven't seen anything like it."

The 20-year-old was a late withdrawal from the Demons' side that was thrashed by Hawthorn by 105 points a week earlier.

Hogan's inclusion against the Dogs on Sunday was critical to Melbourne's forward structure, as he teamed with the mobile Cameron Pedersen.

"You look at other young key forwards in the competition, it's difficult for them to come in to the league and dominate games like Jesse has," Jones said.

"He understands the game, he's got that competitive edge and he's physically developed."

After missing almost all of 2014 with a stress reaction in his back, Hogan made his debut in round one and has gone from strength to strength to kick 14 goals in seven games.

He has also taken 17 contested marks – the league's second-highest tally.

Jones said the way the Demons responded to successive losses to finals-calibre sides Fremantle, the Sydney Swans and Hawthorn showed the team's growth.

"I thought the resilience we showed in terms of getting back on track, particularly after the Hawthorn belting, is a real sign of how far we've come," Jones said.

"We understand we're still a long way off. When we played those teams they really schooled us, but when we play our good footy, it's pretty exciting."

The Demons will aim to make it back-to-back wins when they face Port Adelaide in Alice Springs on Saturday. The Power have hit the skids in recent weeks, with successive losses to West Coast, the Brisbane Lions and Richmond.

However, Jones said the Demons didn't view the Power as vulnerable.

"We're not going to underestimate Port Adelaide at all," Jones said.

"We expect them to change things up and I'm sure [Port coach] Kenny (Hinkley) will address them and get them fired up to really respond.

"We understand the talent they've got and the kind of footy they can play."