Yet again, it was an ugly loss for the New England Patriots on Sunday.

They have now lost six straight games, following their 32-16 Week 7 loss in London at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Drake Maye, Bryce Baringer, Hunter Henry and JaMycal Hasty were the lone bright spots in the loss, and it is beginning to get frustrating for Patriots fans.

The thought was that moving on from Bill Belichick would improve the overall outlook and help modernize the offense. And frankly, it has done exactly that for the Patriots. However, no one could have predicted the defense would fall off this much, especially with the majority of the core players and coaches returning.

Now that we've had a chance to sleep on the game, let's empty out some leftover thoughts from the Week 7 loss.

Drake Maye continues to shine

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Drake Maye played well in this matchup. He elevated a terrible offensive line while looking like he has it. Maye might be a rookie, but his skill set has translated to the NFL thus far in his ability to show poise and confidence in controlling the offense.

Maye needs a lot of help before this team can start winning games again, but he has the traits of an elite quarterback. He is the shining glimmer of hope the franchise needed. We will have to wait and see what happens next, but Patriots lead personnel executive Eliot Wolf and coach Jerod Mayo need to make some changes to spark the overall team as they try and build a foundation with Maye.

Who is the "selfish" player(s) Patriots veterans are referring to?

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Players like Davon Godchaux, Daniel Ekuale and others have called out their defensive teammates, saying that there have been some selfish players trying to make plays, which Jerod Mayo also confirmed. But what has yet to be seen is who that player or the collection of players could be.

It's worth noting this is coming from a defensive line doing the dirty work. It made me wonder if the player being selfish might be someone like safety Kyle Dugger, who has seen good stat lines but hasn't been throwing his weight around in the run game as much as he did prior to his new contract.

But then again, the team named him a captain and he is asked to do a lot more in coverage than he usually does.

Is the player the veterans could be referring to Keion White, who started off the season hot with four sacks? The tape points to that being the case, as it seems White is trying too hard at times to be a playmaker, rather than doing what the defense asks him to do, which is stay in his assignments and win at his job.

Matthew Judon was productive because he was disciplined, and White started that way. But is there a sense that he could have been in the running for Defensive Player of the Year early that pushed him to start chasing stats?

I wonder if that is what the veterans are talking about because I do not see there being any other signs on the film. It's also worth noting that they are not relying on White on every down now, which they were earlier in the year.

With the deadline looming, the Patriots should be buying and selling

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Normally, a team like this would be selling its expiring contracts and veteran players to playoff contenders. While I believe the team should do this, they should also be buying talent that is available from other teams to patch their own holes and find contributors for next year, as they try and build the foundation.

Players like Jonathan Jones, Joshua Uche, K.J. Osborn and Tyquan Thornton are candidates to be moved away from the team. The Patriots will likely try and get some draft capital back, even if it's at the end of the draft. These assets will give them more ammo to move up the board in the middle of the draft or add on to some trade conversations for existing players.

Players like New York Giants edge rusher Azeez Ojulari, Cleveland Browns tackle Jack Conklin and Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins are all options. Chicago Bears guard Nate Davis and Green Bay Packers tackle Andre Dillard are also considered available options.

The Patriots do not need to get all of them, but players like Ojulari and Conklin could be solid moves that could help move the 2025 needle, while also allowing the 2024 team to get through the year building good habits.

The team should be looking at fixing the entire roster at every stage until they feel comfortable with a core they like. Christian Barmore, Christian Gonzalez and Drake Maye are a start, but they need to build off of that.

Is the team worse, or were expectations too high?

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When the Patriots moved on from Bill Belichick, many people thought the team's outlook would be younger and brighter. But the new regime has had its share of growing pains. Ultiamately, it's about how they respond and pull themselves through a rookie year.

But is this team worse than it would have been with Belichick, or did we set expectations too high?

I believe the expectations for this team were that they would be the Texans, who had rookie head coach Demeco Ryans and rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud. But even asking the Patriots to be 75 percent of that team is unrealistic. What the Texans did was historically great.

Not to mention, old friend and Texans general manager Nick Caserio piled a few good drafts and then added talent to a roster that was waiting to be unlocked by a new regime and a quarterback that could elevate those around him. The Patriots, on the other hand, were handed a spoon and asked to dig a trench.

And they're still digging.

I believe the team will be fine, but it has to be with patience. They need to add incrementally and play disciplined football.

What happened to Ja'Lynn Polk?

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Polk posted a cryptic Instagram story after the loss, which came at the time he was ruled out with a head injury after dropping his targets and finishing the day with no catches.

Drake Maye had good things to say about his fellow rookie, but the posting online had many fans, including myself, wondering what could have been going through Polk's mind.

Was he signaling he wants out of New England?

Either way, there is something to be said about what's going on, but the play on the field needs to improve. Whether it's game-planning, play-calling or something else, Polk needs to sit on the bench next week, and the team should give Javon Baker a shot this season.