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Don't look now but there are two Eastern Conference teams that look poised for late-season runs.
The New England Revolution and Toronto FC both posted impressive victories in their most recent MLS matches to push themselves closer to the playoff race and serve notice that this could be the tightest playoff race in league history.
The Revs are doing it with old reliables such as Shalrie Joseph and Steve Ralston, while Toronto looks poised to ride a strong stable of young players, including first-round draft pick O'Brian White.
It's no surprise that both New England and Toronto FC made big jumps in this week's SBI MLS Power Rankings. Here are the new rankings:
SBI MLS Power Rankings (Week 22)
1 (Last Week-1). Columbus Crew (10-3-9)
Last week- Beat FC Dallas, 2-0, last Saturday; beat Puerto Rico Islanders, 2-0, last Tuesday (CONCACAF Champions League-CCL).
This week- at Cruz Azul on Wednesday (CCL)
Last Five (in MLS) - 5-0 in last five (W-W-W-W-W), unbeaten in last nine in all competitions (7-0-2).
Outlook - The only way to stop the Crew in MLS is to give the champs a bye week. Debut in Champions League was impressive, but a truly tough test awaits in Mexico.
2 (2). Houston Dynamo (11-6-6)
Last week- Tied Real Salt Lake, 0-0, last Saturday; beat Isidro Metapan, 1-0, last Wednesday (CCL).
This week- vs. Seattle Sounders on Sunday; at Arabe Unido on Wednesday (CCL).
Last Five - 2-2-1 (T-W-LW-L)
Outlook - Faltered at Rio Tinto last weekend, but posted a victory in its Champions League opener. The arrival of Mexican star Luis Angel Landin will only help the Western Conference leaders move closer to a potential third MLS title in four seasons.
3 (3). Los Angeles Galaxy (7-4-10)
Last week- Lost to Seattle Sounders, 2-0, on Saturday; beat Chicago Fire, 2-0, on Wednesday.
This week- at D.C. United on Saturday.
Last Five - 3-1-1 (W-L-W-T-W).
Outlook - Red cards ruined the Galaxy's chances of really pushing the Sounders, but LA rebounded and delivered one of its most impressive performance of the season in beating Chicago.
4 (4). Chicago Fire (9-4-8)
Last week- Beat Kansas City Wizards, 2-0, last Sunday; lost to Los Angeles, 2-0, on Wednesday.
This week- vs. Colorado Rapids on Sunday.
Last Five - 2-2-1 (L-W-L-W-T).
Outlook - Followed up solid showing vs. KC with a complete stinker vs. LA at home. The Bakary Soumare-Denis Hamlett skirmish is distracting, but what is hurting the Fire more is the absence of fullbacks Gonzalo Segares and Tim Ward.
5 (5). Colorado Rapids (8-6-6)
Last week- Bye week
This week- at Chicago Fire on Sunday.
Last Five - 3-2 (W-L-W-L-W)
Outlook - Awfully quiet week in Rapids land as Colorado enjoyed a week off and tried to figure out how it would cope with the loss of midfielder Colin Clark to a season-ending knee injury. They face a Fire team battling inner-turmoil and struggling to post consistent results at home. Not a bad match-up for a Rapids team that wasn't doing too badly before the bye.
6 (9). New England Revolution (7-6-6)
Last week- Beat Seattle Sounders, 1-0, on Thursday.
This week- vs. Real Salt Lake on Sunday.
Last Five - 3-1-1 in last five (W-L-T-W-W)
Outlook - The first team to beat Seattle at Qwest Field without a red card being involved, the Revs delivered a performance on Thursday that has to make other teams on the playoff fringes nervous. New England has games in hand and has Shalrie Joseph and Steve Ralston healthy. Not having Matt Reis vs. RSL won't help, but baby-faced Brad Knighton was solid as a fill-in starter earlier in the season.
7 (7). Seattle Sounders (8-5-8)
Last week- Beat Los Angeles, 2-0, on Saturday; lost to New England, 1-0, on Thursday.
This week- at Houston Dynamo on Sunday.
Last Five - 1-3-1 (L-W-L-L-T)
Outlook - Don't look now but Seattle's season-long status as a playoff lock has hit shaky ground. Beating a 10-man Galaxy team in LA helped the Sounders post their first win on grass all season, but their showing at home vs. the Revs was flat. Now Seattle could walk onto the field at Houston's Robertson Stadium on Sunday in fifth place in the West.
8 (12). Toronto FC (8-7-6)
Last week- Beat D.C. United, 2-0, last Saturday.
This week- at Chivas USA on Saturday.
Last Five - 2-1-2 (W-T-L-T-W)
Outlook - TFC is going with a youth movement and it might give the team the energy it needs for a late-season surge. O'Brian White is looking good, as do Amadou Sanyang and Emmanuel Gomez. Then you have the team's biggest revelation, Nana Attakora, who just might make Marvell Wynne expendable. Those youngsters will need to show they can produce on the road as they face a desperate Chivas USA squad at Home Depot Center.
9 (6). DC United (6-5-10)
Last week- Lost to Toronto FC, 2-0, last Saturday; lost to CD Marathon, 3-1, last Tuesday (CCL).
This week- vs. Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday, vs. Toluca on Thursday (CCL).
Last Five - 1-2-2 (L-L-T-W-T)
Outlook - After going from Canada to Honduras, D.C. will welcome a trip home where they face a Galaxy team riding high after its road win in Chicago. Greg Janicki's meltdown vs. Marathon won't soon be forgotten, but D.C. won't have much time to regroup this week. Its unbeaten home record will get a stiff test from LA, but Toluca may provide an even tougher one.
10 (8). Real Salt Lake (7-8-6)
Last week- Tied Houston Dynamo, 0-0, last Saturday.
This week- at New England Revolution on Saturday.
Last Five - 2-2-1 (T-W-L-W-L).
Outlook - The good news? The RSL defense has allowed just one goal in three matches. The bad news? The attack has just scored one. Things won't get any easier at New England, not when you consider RSL has just one road win all season.
11 (11). Chivas USA (9-7-3)
Last week- Beat New York Red Bulls, 2-0, on Saturday.
This week- vs. Toronto FC on Saturday.
Last Five - 1-4 (W-L-L-L-L).
Outlook - While beating the Red Bulls isn't that big an accomplishment these days, the victory should help lift the spirits and confidence of a team that was in danger of collapsing. A tough opponent awaits in a surging TFC squad, but the arrival of Jesus Padilla should only help.
12 (10). FC Dallas (6-10-5)
Last week- Lost to Columbus Crew, 2-0, last Saturday.
This week- at New York Red Bulls on Sunday.
Last Five - 3-2 (L-W-W-L-L)
Outlook - The Jeff Cunningham show was put on hold by Columbus, but the Red Bulls are the answer to any striker's dreams these days. Cunningham scored two against New York on July 4th. Could he bag a hat-trick? Dave Van Den Bergh's return to Giants Stadium would probably have led to some cheers from his former fans, that is if any of them were still going to see the Red Bulls.
13 (13). Kansas City Wizards (5-8-6)
Last week- Lost to the Chicago Fire, 2-0, last Sunday.
This week- at San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday.
Last Five - 0-3-2 (L-L-T-T-L)
Outlook - Peter Vermes will be thanking his lucky stars that KC will face one of the two teams most clubs would kill to face right now in San Jose. The Earthquakes are coming off a bye though, so the rest (and new additions) could make the Earthquakes a tougher out than expected. The Wizards need to worry about an attack that has gone cold in recent weeks. How cold? Try one goal in five league matches.
14 (14). San Jose Earthquakes (4-11-5)
Last week- Bye week.
This week- vs. Kansas City Wizards on Saturday.
Last Five - 1-3-1 (L-W-T-L-L)
Outlook - San Jose signed Fabio Da Silva and will hope to be healthier coming off a bye week. Will the Earthquakes attack be able to push a Wizards team struggling with confidence? Can San Jose shutdown a KC offense that has been putrid lately? If they can't, then this team is as bad as most think it is.
15 (15). New York Red Bulls (2-16-4)
Last week- Lost to Chivas USA, 1-0, tonight.
This week- vs. FC Dallas on Sunday.
Last Five - 0-5 (L-L-L-L-L), winless in 13 straight.
Outlook - The team has gone from bad, to terrible, to just flat painful to watch. The the club's management looking likely to stand pat without firing anybody, it's tough to imagine the Red Bulls winning another game this season.
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Some quick thoughts on the rankings:
There were some big jumps this week. You can call them market corrections for both New England and Toronto FC. Both were probably lower than they should have been and last week's results helped shed some light on their campaigns.
New England and Toronto moving up is why RSL dropped despite coming off a draw vs. Houston.
Chicago is in a fragile state. With Bakary Soumare looking unlikely to ever play for the Fire again, Chicago's depth in the back is being severely tested. Once Gonzalo Segares and Tim Ward return, Chicago will get back to being a league power.
If there's a team I probably have too high right now its Colorado, which will have a chance to show it deserves its place by facing Chicago.
That's all for now. What did you think of this week's rankings? See anybody cracking the Top two of Columbus and Houston? Do you like the rankings coming out on Fridays, or do you prefer the Monday-Tuesday posting? Think the Red Bulls can beat Dallas and ends its miserable slide?
Share your thoughts below.
