Only MLS league games will be reflected in the rankings. Rankings are voted on by MLSsoccer.com editorial staff and remarks were written by the editorial staff.
BIGGEST MOVERS: NY, DC, MIN +3 spots | NYC, CLB -4 spots
1
LAST WEEK: 1
HIGH: 1 | LOW: 3
Surprise! The bar - and expectations - keep rising for this group. P.S., Mauro is back training. Yikes!
Previous: Won vs. SKC, 1-0 | Next: vs. POR on 04/29
2
LAST WEEK: 2
HIGH: 2 | LOW: 11
The Timbers' attacking stars came through once again vs. Vancouver. The only real negative was Diego Valeri’s hip flexor injury. They can use him to climb the final rung of these rankings with a victory at FC Dallas on Saturday.
Previous: Won vs. VAN, 2-1 | Next: at DAL on 04/29
3
LAST WEEK: 5
HIGH: 3 | LOW: 18
"A lot of the hype or the word around town is that we only had four wins because they’re all at home. Nobody can say that anymore.” That's Jason Kreis after the win, and that's correct. Welcome to the top 3, Orlando City.
Previous: Won at NYC, 2-1 | Next: vs. COL on 04/29
4
LAST WEEK: 3
HIGH: 3 | LOW: 9
They’ve lost once in seven games, so instead of nit-picking here, why not accentuate the positives? The backline is rock solid (again), Roger Espinoza’s renaissance has been fun to watch and Sporting are doing all this while Benny Feilhaber returned from injury. And yes, they’ve got to score more goals.
Previous: Lost at DAL, 1-0 | Next: vs. RSL on 04/29
5
LAST WEEK: 7
HIGH: 4 | LOW: 17
After the win at RSL, it’s hard to argue against Atlanta being the best transition team in MLS. The big test will come on Sunday when they will likely need to push the game against a defensive D.C. side in ATL’s first home match since March 18.
Previous: Won at RSL, 3-1 | Next: vs. DC on 04/30
6
LAST WEEK: 8
HIGH: 2 | LOW: 8
To think, there were people doubting Sebastian Giovinco even at the beginning of the team’s last home match. Joke’s on them – if he hadn’t been subbed out, he probably could have gotten a hatty. With the Atomic Ant fully back, Toronto, once again, becomes a deadly force.
Previous: Won vs. CHI, 3-1 | Next: vs. HOU on 04/28
7
LAST WEEK: 9
HIGH: 1 | LOW: 9
The Fearsome Foursome were in full effect in SoCal on Sunday. This looks like Seattle’s best attacking lineup and once they get healthy on defense… look out, MLS.
Previous: Won at LA, 3-0 | Next: vs. NE on 04/29
8
LAST WEEK: 4
HIGH: 4 | LOW: 8
Nobody’s perfect, and we probably learned more about Orlando than we did about NYC on Sunday in the Bronx. At this point in the season, it’s a setback and a lesson learned — they’ll still be in the mix come fall.
Previous: Lost vs. ORL, 2-1 | Next: at CLB on 04/29
9
LAST WEEK: 12
HIGH: 3 | LOW: 13
The fact that their 2-0 win never seemed in doubt is all you need to know about a team that struggled to start the season.
Previous: Won vs. CLB, 2-0 | Next: vs. CHI on 04/29
10
LAST WEEK: 6
HIGH: 6 | LOW: 19
That's about a hard a momentum check as you're going to get in MLS. The injury to Artur might prove more of a mountain than that stats indicate.
Previous: Lost at NY, 2-0 | Next: vs. NYC on 04/29
11
LAST WEEK: 11
HIGH: 6 | LOW: 19
Didn't score from the run of play but they were playing against one of the top defenses in MLS. Their forward group is downright scary.
Previous: Won vs. SJ, 2-0 | Next: at TOR on 04/28
12
LAST WEEK: 10
HIGH: 10 | LOW: 21
Friday night in Toronto was an Eastern Conference measuring stick. Right now, the Fire don’t measure up to the top echelon of teams. That shouldn’t be too surprising, and it doesn’t mean they can’t get there eventually as Bastian Schweinsteiger settles in and the summer transfer window comes and goes.
Previous: Lost at TOR, 3-1 | Next: at NY on 04/29
13
LAST WEEK: 15
HIGH: 8 | LOW: 18
Fun lil' comeback in Philly, but they need to start stacking wins now that they're hitting the home-heavy portion of the schedule.
Previous: Drew at PHI, 3-3 | Next: vs. VAN on 4/29
14
LAST WEEK: 13
HIGH: 11 | LOW: 21
Anibal Godoy wasn’t going to bang in golazos forever. Wins against 10-man teams to start the season were nice, but after five straight without three points, the same old questions are coming back to the forefront. Who is going to create consistent danger? Who is actually a consistent goal threat? Oh, and what’s going on with David Bingham?
Previous: Drew at NE, 0-0; Lost at HOU, 2-0 | Next: at MIN on 04/29
15
LAST WEEK: 14
HIGH: 11 | LOW: 22
If you're going to give the ball away in your defensive half against Atlanta, you're going to lose. Doesn't matter how well you play in other facets of the game – those turnovers are killer.
Previous: Lost vs. ATL, 3-1 | Next: at SKC on 04/29
16
LAST WEEK: 19
HIGH: 7 | LOW: 20
A road point isn’t bad. That’s the silver lining for D.C. right now.
Previous: Drew at NE, 2-2 | Next: at ATL on 04/30
17
LAST WEEK: 16
HIGH: 11 | LOW: 20
Two draws in two home matches were not exactly what the Revs were expecting from Week 8. And things don’t get any easier with their toughest two-game road stretch of the season in Seattle (Week 9) and Columbus (Week 10) on the docket.
Previous: Drew vs. SJ, 0-0; Drew vs. DC, 2-2 | Next: at SEA on 4/29
18
LAST WEEK: 21
HIGH: 18 | LOW: 22
They're 2-2-2 in their last six, and they're 2-1-2 with a +1 goal differential since Vadim Demidov was excised from the lineup.
Previous: Won vs. COL, 1-0 | Next: vs. SJ on 04/29
19
LAST WEEK: 18
HIGH: 5 | LOW: 19
There’s plenty of time for the Galaxy to figure this out, but man…it looks ugly out there. Still, if Gio, Gyasi, and Alessandrini can get it clicking in the final third, there may yet be hope for LA.
Previous: Lost vs. SEA, 3-0 | Next: vs. PHI on 04/29
20
LAST WEEK: 17
HIGH: 6 | LOW: 20
Four points and five goals in six games. After going 13-4 in one-goal decisions last year, they're just 1-3 in one-goal games thus far in 2017. The Power Rankings Politburo had real questions as to whether what they did in 2016 was sustainable. We feel like the first eight weeks have given us the answer to that.
Previous: Lost at MIN, 1-0 | Next: at ORL on 04/29
21
LAST WEEK: 20
HIGH: 17 | LOW: 21
After beating Seattle a week prior, the 'Caps couldn't steal a second straight Cascadia result against the Timbers on Saturday. Things won't get easier any time soon -- the trip to Portland was the first in a brutal four-game road trip.
Previous: Lost at POR, 2-1 | Next: at MTL on 04/29
22
LAST WEEK: 22
HIGH: 12 | LOW: 22
Remember that golden time last season when the Union topped the East? That feels very, very distant now. It’s time for everyone to reasonably enter panic mode.
Previous: Drew vs. MTL, 3-3 | Next: at LA on 4/29
