“It’s like one step forward, like 20 steps back,” quarterback Jacoby Brissett said.

The Patriots barely had more first downs (13) than penalties (12). Several were inexcusable, such as being called with 12 men on the field on fourth-and-1, turning a Dolphins punt into a first down. Or Hunter Henry being called for a false start on the final fourth down play of the game. The Patriots also took a delay of game on one of their own punts, prompting Fox announcer Chris Myers to remark, “My goodness.” And they couldn’t get out of the way on the penultimate drive, getting busted for holdings and illegal formation penalties when they needed a touchdown.

In addition to the punishments, there were also astonishing failures. The Patriots slaughtered clock management again late in the second quarter. They forgot to cover Jonnu Smith on third-and-17, allowing him to gather enough yards to get Jason Sanders in range for a 54-yard field goal. The Patriots also tripped over their feet in the second quarter, burning a timeout, wasting a play and missing a 33-yard field goal attempt.

It’s one thing to lose to Brock Purdy and Aaron Rodgers, as the Patriots did the past two weeks. But now they’re losing to a third-string quarterback in Tyler Huntley, and to a struggling Dolphins team that made their own laughable mistakes: a missed field goal, two botched shots that cost them points, and a blocked punt.

We knew the Patriots wouldn’t have enough talent to be competitive this year. But the lack of discipline and overall sloppy play reflects poorly on Mayo, a rookie head coach who still has a long way to go.

▪ Where is the creativity of Alex Van Pelt and the offensive coaches? If anything, the Dolphins hit the Patriots with a steady dose of play-action and deception to overcome their talent shortages at Huntley, gaining 372 total yards. The Patriots had most of their starting offense at their disposal, but gained only 299 yards with their boring, unimaginative scheme (137 in the fourth quarter). They ran just 55 plays, compared to the Dolphins’ 75, and held the ball for just 25:40.

I kept waiting for the Patriots to call some trick play or use play-action — Brissett has the fewest play-action pass attempts in the league — but Van Pelt is sticking with vanilla as his favorite flavor. And the result is just two offensive touchdowns in the last three games.

▪ Brissett doesn’t have much of a chance because he’s under constant pressure, but his time as the starting quarterback should probably end soon. He once again struggled to push the ball down the field, throwing for just 160 yards with just two completions for 20 yards.

The Patriots were once again unable to make big plays or sustain campaigns. They had just five drives of more than 10 yards, and three came in the fourth quarter.

Five games into the season, the offense under Brissett is arguably the worst in the NFL and isn’t showing any kind of progress. The Patriots can’t keep going nowhere and maintaining the status quo. The easiest and most obvious change is at quarterback.

▪ The Patriots defense was missing some key pieces — safeties Kyle Dugger and Jabrill Peppers, as well as linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley — and was overwhelmed by the Dolphins’ run game, which ranked 28th in the NFL entering the game participated with 3.7 yards per carry.

The Dolphins rushed 41 times for 193 yards, with Raheem Mostert and Jaylen Wright combining for 166 yards on 32 carries. If the Patriots defense can’t stop the run, this team won’t win another game this season.

▪ The Patriots’ coaches apparently learned nothing from their Week 2 blunder against the Seahawks because they did it again. They found themselves in no man’s land and weren’t sure whether to go for it or play half.

Starting at their own 5-yard line with 1:50 left, the Patriots first ran the ball downfield and then took their time getting back to the line of scrimmage – giving the impression that they were simply trying to reach halftime. But then the Patriots called two consecutive passes, both of which fell incomplete, stopping the clock and giving the Dolphins possession again with 55 seconds left.

The Dolphins have not benefited from that because they are just as clumsy as the Patriots. But a competent team would have scored at least 3 points, if not 7.

It’s one thing for the Patriots to make a clock management error. But repeating the exact mistake they made against Seattle three weeks ago is inexcusable.

▪ As bad as the Patriots are right now, they at least have a legitimate franchise cornerstone in second-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez. He covered Tyreek Hill for much of the day, had a fantastic diving interception in the first half when he jumped a slant pass, and almost had another interception in the third quarter in the end zone, but Hill knocked the ball out of his hands.

Gonzalez looks like that meme of a nice sports car parked next to a trailer.

▪ Mayo followed suit, benching Rhamondre Stevenson so Antonio Gibson could start the game due to his four fumbles in four weeks. But nothing really changed: Stevenson was still the workhorse, touching the ball 16 times for 92 yards, while Gibson had just 7 touches for 56 yards. Stevenson scored the Patriots’ only touchdown on a 33-yard run and averaged 7.4 yards per carry for the game. Stevenson is the Patriots’ best playmaker, and they have so little talent that they can’t afford to limit his playing time.

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Ben Volin can be reached at [email protected].