With not much left to do in a lost season, Jerod Mayo and the New England Patriots are stressing their focus on building their future, which includes rookie development down the stretch of 2024. That includes recent second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk, who they hope to see build a foundation with fellow rookie Drake Maye.

Despite not producing much for most of his inaugural campaign, Polk could see an increased role over the final month of the regular season, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

“The Patriots want to get receiver Ja’Lynn Polk going over these past four games, which ESPN’s Mike Reiss pointed out on Friday,” Fowler wrote. “I’m told this is definitely a hope from some internally. Now is the time — K.J. Osborn was released, and New England is sitting at 3-10 with no wide receiver surpassing 500 yards yet.

“Plus, the Cardinals are willing to play a healthy dose of zone coverage, against which Polk was known to thrive in college. Drake Maye and Polk have worked on their timing behind the scenes with hopes of connecting on a grander scale. They need momentum entering next season, and they can start building it against Arizona.”

Entering their Week 15 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, Polk has just 12 total catches for 87 receiving yards. However, two of his 12 receptions have been touchdowns. Despite the Patriots releasing K.J. Osborn and Polk starting a handful of games earlier in the year, he has since been surpassed on the depth chart by emerging second-year wideout Kayshon Boutte.

Polk has not been as successful as a rookie as Maye has but clearly still has the potential New England initially saw in him. The 22-year-old was the nation’s 15th-leading receiver of Division I in 2023, recording 1,159 yards as a senior at Washington.

Patriots look to snap three-game losing streak in Week 15

Currently 310 with four games remaining, winning is less important for the Patriots than player development. However, after a one-point loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 14, New England looks to snap its current three-game losing streak against the Cardinals in Week 15.

Despite the losses, Maye has topped 200 passing yards in each of the team’s three previous outings. Maye is now up to 1,696 passing yards on the year, the fourth-most among rookies despite starting just seven games.

The Patriots will play two of their four remaining games at home and two on the road. They play the first of their final two road games against the Cardinals before traveling to face the Buffalo Bills. New England will close out the 2024 campaign with back-to-back home games, beginning with the Los Angeles Chargers and followed by a rematch with the Bills.