The New England Patriots’ secondary had a shaky start in 2018, but they eventually blossomed into one of the best crews in the league.
Collectively, they recorded the second-highest coverage grade in 2018 at 93.1, according to Pro Football Focus. The core five players included Stephon Gilmore, Devin McCourty, Jason McCourty, Patrick Chung and J.C. Jackson.
Gilmore was the No. 1 ranked cornerback last season with a 90.8 coverage grade — and he was clearly the best overall corner. Jason McCourty finished the season as the No. 8 ranked corner with a 83.3 coverage grade, and his brother Devin finished as the No. 9 safety with a 83.7 coverage grade.
Oddly enough, the Patriots allowed 29 passing touchdowns last season and were one of the lower ranked teams in most pass defense categories. They had a very strong playoff run — which likely played a big factor in their overall coverage grades.
New England’s secondary finished the season off strong with an incredible performance in the Super Bowl against the high-scoring Los Angeles Rams — where they held them to only three points.
