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The Patriots had their bye week this week. With four games left in the regular season, it is imperative that the team shows improvement. 

Simply being competitive isn’t enough. Jerod Mayo and his staff have to show that they evaluated the team during the bye and fixed many of the issues that ail the team. 

Here are five areas that the Patriots need to improve in during the final quarter of the season.

1. Disciplined play: Penalties have been a problem for the Patriots this season. A big problem. The lack of discipline has hurt the team, especially in key moments in games. Mayo and the staff need to stress playing smarter and more under control. They also need to ensure that the players are in positions where they can succeed and not commit penalties. This has to be a focal point the rest of this season. 

2. Red Zone offense: The Patriots came into this weekend ranked 31st in the NFL in red zone offense. Finishing drives is important and the Patriots have not done that this season. Alex Van Pelt and the offensive staff had a chance to evaluate what the team has run in the red zone and what they could do different moving forward. The inability to consistently run the ball on short yardage and goal line situations has been a problem. 

3. Communication in the secondary: The secondary has struggled this season and a big reason for that has been a general lack of communication. Strong secondary play was a hallmark of Bill Belichick’s defenses but that has not been the case this season. The Patriots give up a lot of big plays and a big reason for that is not playing in sync and communicating after the snap. 

4. Defensive fundamentals: Fundamentally, the Patriots have been terrible on defense this season. Poor tackling, pursuit angles and bad run fits have been a problem. It is why the Patriots defense is statistically worse in every major category when compared to last season. Getting back to the basics and focusing on playing sound defense physically will be key the rest of the season. The Patriots need to be more accountable fundamentally speaking in general. 

5. Drake Maye and ball security: Maye has lived up to the hype thus far and looks like a franchise quarterback. The only issue has been ball security. He needs to take better care of the ball. If he does not, it will hinder his development and the development of the offense. The Patriots have some tough games remaining on their schedule. They will need Maye to play well. Part of that will be taking care of the football.