FOXBORO — In swapping out quarterbacks last weekend, Jerod Mayo sent two messages.

No. 1: the future is here.

No. 2: the present isn’t good enough. For five games, Jacoby Brissett took his marching orders – protect the football and play it safe – and marched past mediocrity and into misery. The Pats couldn’t pass, couldn’t score, couldn’t scare anybody.

So out went Brissett, and in came Drake Maye. The Patriots scored a season-high 21 points, but lost by 20, which has now triggered more changes.

On Wednesday, staring down a potential six-game losing streak and another international defeat after last year’s debakel (you can guess how that German word translates), Mayo announced the Patriots are shaking things up.

“There will definitely be changes in the starting lineup,” he said. “Look, we’ve got to put the best guys out there that give us the best chance to win.

So, let’s play a game of who’s next. First up, wideouts.

The Patriots aren’t benching DeMario Douglas nor Kayshon Boutte after they scored their first career touchdowns on Sunday. Mayo also applauded both players earlier this week when drawing a line between who’s producing and who’s not.

“I think when I look at the film, it’s Boutte, it’s Pop (Douglas), it’s (Kendrick Bourne),” Mayo said Monday. “And we need the rest of those guys to step up and make plays.”

Notably absent from that list: Ja’Lynn Polk. You can bank on Polk seeing fewer snaps Sunday like a camera shot of Big Ben coming back from a commercial during the television broadcast.

To review: Polk has three drops and two catches in his last two games. He’s caught five of his last 17 targets. According to Next Gen Stats, Polk is averaging the NFL’s second-lowest separation at the catch point and fewest yards gained after the catch.

Now, any benching should be considered temporary. Mayo is not banishing Polk during a season when the Patriots are intent on developing young players, especially those they consider as potential parts of a future core. Though Mayo is also not hiding from what seems to be bothering his rookie receiver.

“I think (Polk) just needs to get over this mental hump,” Mayo said.

The Pats could simply replace Polk with Bourne in a 1-for-1 swap. But that decision will also be tied to how the coaches want to reshape their offense around Maye, which to date has been most efficient with two tight ends on the field. Considering Douglas is by far their most efficient and explosive receiver, yet someone who hardly play in two-tight end sets, would the staff also bench No. 2 tight end Austin Hooper to keep Douglas on the field?

New England Patriots wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk almost makes a catch in the end zone but landed out of bounds during the final seconds of a game against the Dolphins at Gillette Stadium. (Nancy Lane/Boston Herald)

Here’s the case: Hooper has two catches in his last two games, and Maye targeted his tight ends at a lower rate Sunday (22%) than Brissett did through five games (29%). Maye is more mobile than Brissett and a more effective outside thrower, which could patch some of the Patriots’ protection issues far in 11 personnel (packages with three receivers) and unlock more receiver targets with better efficiency?

Will it? Hard to tell, especially considering all four of Maye’s sacks happened with three receivers on the field. And the fact that generally speaking, the Pats have received decent to above-average run-blocking from Hooper and Hunter Henry.

Defensively, there’s a clear candidate for Mayo’s upcoming changes: Raekwon McMillan.

McMillan has been at the center of most of the Patriots’ breakdowns in run defense, including a 59-yard run 20-yard touchdown against Houston. McMillan is getting handled by offensive linemen when they reach the second level and sometimes running himself out of plays. None of the Pats’ backup linebackers thump quite like Ja’Whaun Bentley, whose season-ending torn pec has now left the Patriots without one of their best run defenders and hardest hitters (Jabrill Peppers is also missing).

But not far down that hard hitters list is Christian Elliss, who impressed new linebackers coach Dont’a Hightower this summer with his physicality. Elliss, a former special teamer, is fast, physical and already working as the Patriots’ lone linebacker in dime personnel packages. He’s also yet to miss a tackle in 70 defensive snaps.

Look for Elliss to replace McMillan this weekend or next, as free-agent addition Sione Takitaki ramps back up after recently returning from the Physically Unable to Play list.

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One sleeper candidate to see fewer snaps: defensive lineman Deatrich Wise. The defensive captain is one of the team’s lowest-graded defenders at Pro Football Focus, and is only averaging around one pressure per game. Never regarded as a strong run defender, Wise already lost a starting job to Keion White, who’s started every game this season after Wise made 13 starts in 16 game appearances a year ago.

White bounced back from an ugly two-game stretch with three pressures last Suday. If he takes any more penalties – as he did with two 15-yard flags in the team’s Week 5 loss to Miami – White could also be at risk of seeing fewer snaps.

Bottom line: at 1-5, Mayo may not be messing around anymore.

“My message to the coaches and the players, really, (is) we want our most dependable players out there that we can really count on,” Mayo said. “If you’re going to have pre-snap, post-snap penalties, we can’t live that way. … It’s the personnel part of it, like a wake-up call.”