The Patriots have made significant adjustments to their wide receiver depth chart since the start of the season, and more changes could be coming.

Tyquan Thornton and K.J. Osborn were both Week 1 starters for the Patriots, but in Sunday’s 41-21 loss to the Texans, Thornton was a healthy scratch, and Osborn was active but didn’t play.

Kendrick Bourne’s return off of the PUP list has certainly played a factor, but Kayshon Boutte, who didn’t play in Weeks 1 or 2, has now emerged as a starter.

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“It’s the same thing that we’re going through with the offensive line. I think when I look at the film, it’s Boutte, it’s Pop [DeMario Douglas], it’s [Bourne], and we need the rest of those guys to step up and make plays,” head coach Jerod Mayo said Monday.

Not included in Mayo’s group is rookie Ja’Lynn Polk, who caught just one pass on three targets for 4 yards in Sunday’s game. PFF gave Polk one drop. He got his hands on another pass, as well, that fell incomplete.

“I think he just needs to get over this mental hump,” Mayo said of Polk. “You’ve got to eliminate the dropped passes. You’ve got to be better at blocking, which he did a great job in college at that and at times throughout the season. He just has to continue to grow, and he has to work harder. He has to pay more attention to the details, and we fully expect him to grow into a receiver that’s dependable on run and pass downs.”

It’s worth wondering what the Patriots’ wide receiver group will look like, and if Polk is an odd-man out, when Bourne is back to full health. Bourne said last week that it would take a couple of weeks for him to get back to 100%. He saw his snap count double from Week 5 (16 snaps) to Week 6 (34 snaps).

Douglas led Patriots pass catchers with six catches on nine targets for 92 yards with a touchdown in Sunday’s loss. Boutte caught three passes on three targets for 59 yards with a 40-yard touchdown. Bourne caught two passes on two targets for 9 yards.

Polk played every snap in the Patriots’ Week 5 loss to the Dolphins and suffered a drop in that game, as well. Boutte led Patriots wide receivers in snaps Week 6 with 55 (83%), while Polk played 43 snaps (65%).