{"numbering":"asc","slides":[{"index":1,"title":"Patriots Season Report Card","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/patriots-perry-report-card-season-21218.jpg","caption":"

When the Patriots walked off of the US Bank Stadium turf covered in green confetti, they didn't leave the 2017 season behind. Super Bowl LII will stick with them. They'll feel the pangs of an opportunity missed. They'll think about the "what ifs" born that night in Minneapolis. They'll cope with the physical pain of another football season played.

For us, the end of the season isn't quite as heavy. But we're still kicking it around all the same. Before free agency and the draft, before closing the book on 2017, we've handed out some final grades for each Patriots position group.

You'll notice we've shown our work for each grade, listing the weekly marks every group received from Week 10 (after the bye) through the Super Bowl. If you need a refresher on why certain units received the grades they did at the midseason point, you can check the marks from Weeks 1-8 here. While the final grades listed combine all 19 games played in the regular season and playoffs, some groups - like quarterback - got a bump in their grade for their work in the playoffs for obvious reasons.

Now that you understand the method by which we came to these marks, let's get to 'em.

"},{"index":3,"title":"QUARTERBACK: A-","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/brady.jpg","caption":"

Tom Brady was the league MVP for the third time, though statistically, it was probably the fifth-best season of his career. He had four seasons with better yards-per-attempt numbers and quarterback ratings. But statistics aren't necessarily what made Brady's 2017 so impressive. It was that he was able to perform as well as he did for as long as he did. At 40. In a season when Carson Wentz, Aaron Rodgers, Deshaun Watson and Andrew Luck all lost significant time to injury (or the entire season, in Luck's case), Brady took a beating and continued to show up for work. He wasn't perfect down the stretch, but what he did at the end of the year against the Jaguars and Eagles - two of the best defenses in football - was remarkable.

Week 10: A
Week 11: A
Week 12: B
Week 13: B-
Week 14: C-
Week 15: B+
Week 16: B-
Week 17: C+
AFC DG: A
AFC CG: A-
Super Bowl: A-

Weeks 1-8: B+
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: A-
Final grade: A-

"},{"index":5,"title":"RUNNING BACK: B+","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/lewis_12118.jpg","caption":"

The strong season the Patriots got from this group in 2017 may eventually be lost to time since the backs a) were largely snuffed out by Jaguars speedy linebackers in the AFC title game and b) weren't much of a factor in the Super Bowl. But they helped keep the Patriots offense afloat in the mid-to-late portion of the season, easing some of the pressure off the shoulders of their QB. Dion Lewis was particularly effective in embarrassing divisional rivals, running roughshod over the Dolphins, Bills, Bills again and Jets in four of New England's final six regular-season games as the Patriots wrapped up home-field advantage.

Week 10: A-
Week 11: B+
Week 12: A
Week 13: A
Week 14: C+
Week 15: B-
Week 16: A
Week 17: A-
AFC DG: A-
AFC CG: C
Super Bowl: B

Weeks 1-8: B+
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B+
Final grade: B+

"},{"index":7,"title":"WIDE RECEIVER: B","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/cp-patriots-brandin-cooks-012818x.jpg","caption":"

Danny Amendola was a monster in the postseason. Chris Hogan was dynamite in the Super Bowl after coming back from a shoulder injury that slowed him considerably. Brandin Cooks was very good throughout the majority of the regular season, putting up numbers that made him one of the league's most productive deep threats. It wasn't a dominant season from this unit, but no one was expecting one when Julian Edelman tore his ACL in Detroit last summer. This was a group that played forgettably for about the final month of the regular season, but what they did in the playoffs gave their grade a slight boost.

Week 10: B+
Week 11: A
Week 12: B+
Week 13: C
Week 14: D
Week 15: C+
Week 16: C+
Week 17: C
AFC DG: B
AFC CG: A-
Super Bowl: A

Weeks 1-8: B
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B-
Final grade: B

"},{"index":9,"title":"TIGHT END: B+","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/gronk.jpg","caption":"

Even with the world's best tight end, this position can't crack the "A" range? The Patriots got so little from the others at this spot - they went out and tried to revive Martellus Bennett's season for a reason - that it shouldn't really be all that surprising that this grade is what it is. Had it not been for what Rob Gronkowski did in the Divisional Round and the Super Bowl, the grade might even be a touch lower. But because of what the First-Team All-Pro (and future action movie superstar?) did in the postseason and in Pittsburgh in Week 15, taking over their most important regular-season game by himself in the fourth quarter, this group deserves the benefit of the doubt when the person with the red pen is waffling between grades. If Gronkowski opts to never play again, he will have solidified his standing as one of the best to ever play his position by finishing his career with one of his best seasons. James Develin's first Pro Bowl nod also gives this unit a positive bump. The fullback meets with tight ends on a daily basis and has factored into our tight end grades all year.

Week 10: A-
Week 11: B+
Week 12: A
Week 13: A-
Week 14: C
Week 15: A
Week 16: A
Week 17: C
AFC DG: A-
AFC CG: C
Super Bowl: A-

Weeks 1-8: B-
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B+
Final grade: B+

"},{"index":11,"title":"OFFENSIVE LINE: B","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/new-england-patriots-thuney-solder-offensive-line-21218.jpg","caption":"

Until you go back and look at what this group did on a game-by-game basis, it may be more difficult than it should be to understand what kind of season they had. They went the entire second half without arguably their best player in Marcus Cannon. Still, they shut down Von Miller and the Broncos and Khalil Mack and the Raiders in back-to-back weeks with a line that featured backup right tackle LaAdrian Waddle. They were beaten badly in Miami, but they finished strong with solid performances against two of the best defensive fronts in the league in Jacksonville and Philadelphia. If the Patriots helped their odds of holding onto offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia for another season by keeping Josh McDaniels around, then that move was probably even more valuable than we realize.

Week 10: A
Week 11: A
Week 12: C
Week 13: B+
Week 14: D
Week 15: B
Week 16: A-
Week 17: C+
AFC DG: A-
AFC CG: B
Super Bowl: B+

Weeks 1-8: B-
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B
Final grade: B

"},{"index":13,"title":"SPECIAL TEAMS: B","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/new-england-patriots-stephen-gostkowski-missed-fg-super-bowl-52-20418.jpg","caption":"

During two different press conferences in the past five years, Bill Belichick has mentioned just how much he respects the special teams grades doled out by Rick Gosselin of the Dallas Morning News. The Patriots came in third in the NFL this season, according to Gosselin's system, so perhaps this grade is harsh. The Patriots had explosive plays (Dion Lewis returning a kick for a touchdown in Denver), steady performances (both Ryan Allen and Stephen Gostkowski had a strong ends to the regular season), and critical plays in key moments (the AFC title game was one of special teams coach Joe Judge's best of the year). What happened in the Super Bowl, though, prevented this unit's overall grade from creeping higher. One or two plays on "teams" could've changed the complexion of the game.

Week 10: A
Week 11: A-
Week 12: C
Week 13: B+
Week 14: B
Week 15: B
Week 16: B
Week 17: A-
AFC DG: B-
AFC CG: A-
Super Bowl: F

Weeks 1-8: B
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B
Final grade: B

"},{"index":15,"title":"DEFENSIVE LINE: B-","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/cp-patriots-bills-trey-flowers-tyrod-taylor-122417.jpg","caption":"

This may have been the position group that was most severely affected by offseason moves (Kony Ealy's release; Rob Ninkovich's retirement) and injuries (Dont'a Hightower's torn pec plucked him from the edge; Derek Rivers' season ended before it began), but it salvaged a grade in the 'B' range for two reasons. First, until the Super Bowl came around, Belichick's defensive front was generally very effective in stopping the run in the second half of the season -- particularly in the Divisional Round and the AFC title game. Second, it prevented mobile quarterbacks from scrambling like crazy. Generating pressure, however, was an entirely different kettle of fish. Outside of an eight-sack performance against the Titans, and consistently strong work from Trey Flowers (77 total pressures, per PFF), the Patriots had trouble finding defensive linemen who could consistently win one-on-one battles all season.

Week 10: B
Week 11: B-
Week 12: A-
Week 13: B-
Week 14: C-
Week 15: B
Week 16: A-
Week 17: A-
AFC DG: A
AFC CG: B+
Super Bowl: D

Weeks 1-8: B-
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B
Final grade: B-

"},{"index":17,"title":"LINEBACKER: C","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/new-england-patriots-kyle-van-noy-super-bowl-52-20418.jpg","caption":"

This may very well be the spot that is most desperate for an infusion of talent in 2018. Kyle Van Noy did admirable work for most of the second half of the season as he filled in as Hightower's replacement in the hybrid end-slash-'backer role. Against run-heavy teams, Elandon Roberts was a vital piece of the plan. And when facing mobile quarterbacks, Marquis Flowers was a valuable spy. But the lack of depth and athleticism at this level was glaring in Super Bowl LII as the Eagles went after Patriots linebackers in coverage. They also had no issue sealing off second-level Patriots in the run game or on screens. Belichick's linebackers had their best game of the season in the Divisional Round, but their outings in Pittsburgh and a month-and-a-half later in Minneapolis were not pretty. As a result, and giving their final game more weight than the others, they couldn't climb out of the "C" range.

Week 10: B+
Week 11: C+
Week 12: A-
Week 13: B-
Week 14: D
Week 15: D
Week 16: B+
Week 17: B
AFC DG: A
AFC CG: B
Super Bowl: F

Weeks 1-8: C+
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: C
Final grade: C

"},{"index":19,"title":"SECONDARY: C+","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets_media_gallery/boston/2018/02/13/stephon-gilmore-1.jpg","caption":"

This group was relatively flawed from the outset, which is still a shock given the amount of talent peppering the back end of the Patriots defense. What we saw in the Super Bowl was in many ways a resurrection of the same issues Belichick and Matt Patricia's defensive backfield had in the season's first month. With aggressive man corners on the roster, bunch formations and three-by-one sets and pick plays and motions were the way to attack the Patriots in September. That's exactly what the Eagles did to them in February. That few other Patriots opponents tried those tactics as aggressively as Philadelphia did is mind-boggling. This group seemed to find its way, particularly Stephon Gilmore, as New England settled on a handful of coverages that accentuated the man-to-man skills of its players. But in the end, with little in the way of a pass rush to work with and Malcolm Butler on the bench, the communication and coverage abilities of Patriots defensive backs weren't championship-caliber.

Week 10: C+
Week 11: B+
Week 12: B+
Week 13: A-
Week 14: C
Week 15: B
Week 16: C+
Week 17: B+
AFC DG: B+
AFC CG: B-
Super Bowl: D

Weeks 1-8: C
Weeks 10-Super Bowl: B-
Final grade: C+

"}]}

Patriots Season Report Card: Some trouble on the final exam