The Patriots were never going to compete for a Super Bowl in their first season under Jerod Mayo, but improvement was expected from a young and raw roster.

Any upward trajectory seemed to come to a crashing halt in Sunday’s 34-15 loss to the Dolphins. Still, head coach Jerod Mayo believes the team has shown improvement this season.

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“I think the team has definitely gotten better. You take the Miami game out and look at the last four, we’ve done a lot of good things,” Mayo said. “Now, we know that the NFL can come down to one play. What I tell the guys all the time is most of the time people think getting better and success is just like this [motioned upward slope with hands], but really, it’s an up and down, up and down type of thing. You just have to continue to just chip at the rock. We have a lot of young players in there that are developing, and hopefully, we’ll be good going forward.”

Quarterback Drake Maye has certainly developed. And last year’s first-round pick, cornerback Christian Gonzalez, continues to get better. It’s difficult to find a long list of players consistently improving beyond Maye and Gonzalez, however.

Wide receiver Kayshon Boutte and defensive end Keion White have taken second-year leps, and left tackle Vederian Lowe, even through Sunday’s struggles, has played better this season compared to 2023. But beyond that, it’s difficult to find quantifiable improvement among young players on the roster. The Patriots’ 2024 rookie class, outside of Maye, has especially struggled to produce.

Second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk has just 12 catches for 87 yards with two touchdowns. Offensive tackle Caedan Wallace, a third-round pick, is on injured reserve with an ankle injury. Guard Layden Robinson has been benched after being selected in the fourth round. Another fourth-round pick, Javon Baker, has yet to register his first NFL catch. Cornerback Marcellas Dial, quarterback Joe Milton III and tight end Jaheim Bell are buried on the depth chart as late-round players.

The Patriots’ second-best rookie has actually been safety Dell Pettus, an undrafted free agent.