The 2025 PLL season is over. Connor Shellenberger has his ring, the New York Atlas have their first championship, and the rest of the league is left sorting through what went right, what went sideways, and who needs a serious offseason reckoning. Here are the grades. No participation trophies.

New York Atlas — A

What else do you give the champions? The Atlas went 7-3 in the regular season, dispatched the Waterdogs 13-11 in the semifinals, and then won the whole thing 14-13 over Denver in a championship game that came down to the wire. Connor Shellenberger took home MVP and Attackman of the Year, Jeff Teat earned Finals MVP, and Gavin Adler won Defensive Player of the Year — the Atlas were loaded, and they played like it when it mattered most. This was a complete team performance, not a fluke. New York earned every bit of this.

Denver Outlaws — B+

Seven wins, a West division title, a blowout of the Redwoods in the semifinals, and a championship game appearance. By any objective measure, Denver had a great season. Tim Soudan took home Coach of the Year honors, and Logan McNaney won Goalie of the Year — this was a well-coached, well-tended team that made the final. The only reason this isn’t an A is that they lost the game that mattered most, and losing 14-13 hurts a lot more than losing 14-8 ever would. Jake Piseno also took home LSM of the Year. Three awards and a runner-up finish. The Outlaws will be back.

Then there’s the Jared Bernhardt storyline. The former Heisman contender returned to lacrosse after his NFL attempt didn’t pan out and signed with Denver — and that narrative added real energy to the Outlaws’ season. Whether the production matched the hype is something the box score can tell you, but the story itself gave Denver a hook the rest of the league didn’t have. That matters for a league still building its profile.

Philadelphia Waterdogs — B-

Four wins and six losses in the regular season doesn’t look great on paper, but the Waterdogs made the playoffs and then knocked off the Whipsnakes 14-12 in the quarterfinals. That’s a statement win. They gave the Atlas everything they had in the semis before losing 13-11. Philadelphia played better lacrosse when the stakes went up, which is genuinely hard to do. This was a 4-6 team that outperformed its record when October arrived. Credit where it’s due.

California Redwoods — B-

Five wins, five losses, made the playoffs, knocked off Carolina 14-12 in the quarterfinals, and had Chris Kavanagh win Rookie of the Year while TD Ierlan took home Faceoff Specialist of the Year. There’s real talent here. The problem is a 12-7 blowout loss to Denver in the semifinals is a bad way to exit — the Redwoods didn’t just lose, they got handled. Two individual awards and a semifinal appearance puts California ahead of the pack. The grade reflects the potential alongside the playoff floor.

Maryland Whipsnakes — C+

Four wins, six losses, and a first-round playoff exit at the hands of the Waterdogs. The Whipsnakes are one of the most storied franchises in PLL history and they went out in the quarterfinals by two goals. That’s not a disaster, but it’s not what Maryland is supposed to look like. They were in the conversation all season without ever quite separating from the pack. The tools are there — the results weren’t. C+ is fair.

Boston Cannons — C+

The Cannons finished 4-6 and missed the playoffs. That’s the headline. The footnote is that Matt Campbell won Midfielder of the Year — a legitimate honor on a team that couldn’t figure out how to win consistently. When your best individual performer takes home a league award and your season still ends in September, you have a roster-construction problem, not a talent problem. Boston has a genuine playmaker. They need to build something around him that actually works.

Carolina Chaos — C

Carolina went 5-5, made the playoffs, and lost to the Redwoods 14-12 in the quarterfinals. Getting in is always better than not getting in, but 5-5 is a .500 season and a first-round exit is a first-round exit. The Chaos didn’t do anything that suggested they’re trending toward contention. They finished right in the middle of the pack and played like it. There’s no shame in being a C team if you’re actively building toward something. The question for Carolina is whether they are.

Utah Archers — C-

Four wins, six losses, no playoffs. The Archers had the same record as the Cannons and Waterdogs but none of the narrative. No individual awards that moved the needle, no storylines that broke through, no close playoff miss that had people talking. Utah needs more than roster filler to be relevant next year. They need a genuine identity and someone to build around. Right now that doesn’t exist.

The Bigger Picture

The 2025 PLL gave us a championship game worth watching, a legitimate MVP in Shellenberger, and a few stories that will stick — the Atlas finally breaking through, Bernhardt’s return to the sport, McNaney standing on his head for Denver all year. The middle of the league is genuinely competitive, which keeps things interesting but also means a lot of teams finish identical on paper and different only in how they lost in October.

Atlas raised the bar. Now everyone else has to decide if they’re actually going to try to match it.