{"id":13147,"date":"2012-06-27T22:07:12","date_gmt":"2012-06-28T02:07:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/?p=13147"},"modified":"2012-06-27T22:15:09","modified_gmt":"2012-06-28T02:15:09","slug":"mls-rankings-week-16-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/?p=13147","title":{"rendered":"MLS Rankings: Week 16"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every week the New England Soccer Today crew will look beyond the standings to rank each of the 19 Major League Soccer (MLS) teams. This week Sean Donahue and Brian O\u2019Connell contributed rankings. Comments are followed by the ranker\u2019s name and the rank they gave that team.<\/em><\/p>\n

1.<\/strong> (+1) SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES<\/strong> (10-3-3, 33 points)
\nSaturday\u2019s epic between the Quakes and Salt Lake signaled a shift in power. And that shift has the Quakes as the clear front runner. (Brian \u2013 1) \u2026 How about the Quakes? Road win at Salt Lake puts them on top. (Sean \u2013 1)<\/p>\n

T2. D.C. UNITED<\/strong> (9-5-3, 30 points)
\nChris Pontius grabs two goals, but it wasn\u2019t enough against an energized Red Bulls squad, who snapped D.C.\u2019s winning streak at four. (Brian \u2013 2) \u2026 The hottest team in MLS heading into the weekend looked it for the first 30 seconds against New York, then it all fell apart. (Sean \u2013 3)<\/p>\n

T2.<\/strong> (+3) \u00a0NEW YORK RED BULLS<\/strong> (9-4-3, 30 points)
\nGet a fortuitous road point in Vancouver on Wednesday, and three days later Brandon Barklage goes off against his former \u2018mates with two goals in a 3-2 win over D.C. Four points in four days? Not too bad. (Brian \u2013 3) \u2026 Thierry Henry\u2019s back, but the Red Bulls didn\u2019t need him on Sunday to remain unbeaten at home. (Sean \u2013 2)<\/p>\n

4.<\/strong> (-3) REAL SALT LAKE<\/strong> (10-5-2, 32 points)
\nTalk about a terrible week. A loss to LA followed up by another defeat \u2013 this time at the hands of San Jose \u2013 and Salt Lake gets ousted from the throne. (Brian \u2013 4) \u2026 Could the week have gone much worse? Gave away a 2-0 lead to Los Angeles \u2013 which may have sparked the defending Champs to life \u2013 with sloppy defending, then some more sloppy defense handed San Jose a win and first place. Uncharacteristic play from Salt Lake. (Sean \u2013 4)<\/p>\n

5.<\/strong> (-1) SPORTING KANSAS CITY<\/strong> (9-4-2, 29 points)
\nA 1-1 draw against Seattle wasn\u2019t bad, but a 4-0 loss to Philadelphia was unforgiveable. It may just have been one of those games, but rebounding from it won\u2019t be easy with a game at Montreal on Saturday. (Brian \u2013 5) \u2026 Sure, they dominated every stat but the score, but falling 4-0 to Philly, the worst offense in the league, is beyond embarrassing. (Sean \u2013 5)<\/p>\n

6.<\/strong> (+3) CHICAGO FIRE<\/strong> (7-5-3, 24 points)
\nGrabbed two goals before going shorthanded to hold on for a 2-1 win over the Crew.\u00a0 It may not always be pretty, but the Fire are finding a way to say in the upper half of the conference table. (Brian \u2013 6) \u2026 Overcoming an early red card to grab an ugly, but impressive, three points, shows the Fire might just have what it takes to make some noise down the stretch. (Sean \u2013 6)<\/p>\n

T7. COLUMBUS CREW<\/strong> (5-5-4, 19 points)
\nThe anemic attack continued against Chicago, as the Crew failed to capitalize with a man advantage for over an hour and see their unbeaten streak snapped at six. (Brian \u2013 7) \u2026 If the Crew can\u2019t find an answer up top, they\u2019ll keep sliding down the table. (Sean -9)<\/p>\n

T7.<\/strong> (-1) VANCOUVER WHITECAPS<\/strong> (7-4-5, 26 points)
\nA litany of chances only yields a single goal in a 1-1 draw to New York on Wednesday, while they get overwhelmed by a resurgent LA in an embarrassing 3-0 loss.\u00a0 A gut check? You could say that. (Brian \u2013 8) \u2026 Perhaps should\u2019ve had more against New York, then fell victim to a surging Los Angeles. Tough week for Vancouver. (Sean \u2013 8)<\/p>\n

9.<\/strong> (+5) LOS ANGELES GALAXY <\/strong>(6-8-2, 20 points)
\nAre the Gals back for good? A 3-2 win at Salt Lake and a 3-0 pounding of Vancouver seem to suggest that the bear\u2019s been poked \u2013 and the rest of the league better watch out. (Brian \u2013 10) \u2026 Coming back from 2-0 down to beat the West\u2019s best on the road looks like it may be the turning point in the Galaxy\u2019s season. If it is, they should thank Salt Lake\u2019s defense. (Sean \u2013 7)<\/p>\n

10.<\/strong> (-1) HOUSTON DYNAMO<\/strong> (5-5-5, 20 points)
\nThe Dynamo endured a humbling 4-2 loss to the Impact and with Geoff Cameron about ready to leave, the attack has to step up this summer. (Brian \u2013 9) \u2026 Rough loss to Montreal. Houston\u2019s usually strong defense seems to have deserted them lately. (Sean \u2013 11)<\/p>\n

11.<\/strong> (-3) SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC<\/strong> (7-5-4, 25 points)
\nWhen it rains, it pours. Fail to win for the seventh straight time and, to make matters worse, Fredy Montero gets booked in the waning minutes. Sigi Schmid can only hope that this too shall pass. (Brian \u2013 11) \u2026 At least there\u2019s still the Open Cup? Somehow that\u2019s the only thing that seems to be going right for Seattle. (Sean \u2013 10)<\/p>\n

12. NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION<\/strong> (5-7-3, 18 points)
\nExciting comeback at BMO Field rescues the Revs from the brink, but for the second time in a month, the Revs fall into a two-goal hole in the first half. Even so, the Revs are riding a modest three-game unbeaten streak. (Brian \u2013 12) \u2026\u00a0 A two goal comeback may feel like a win, but the reality is the Revs have gotten two points out of two games they should\u2019ve come away with six points from. \u00a0(Sean \u2013 12)<\/p>\n

13. MONTREAL IMPACT<\/strong> (5-8-3, 18 points)
\nThey may have been stifled in a 2-1 loss at Chivas USA, but they follow up with a 4-2 goalfest against Houston. Their defense may not be standing tall, but their offense has been putting together some impressive displays as of late. (Brian \u2013 13) \u2026 Loss to Chivas could\u2019ve dented Montreal\u2019s confidence, but the Impact bounced right back with a big win over Houston. (Sean \u2013 14)<\/p>\n

14.<\/strong> (-3) COLORADO RAPIDS<\/strong> (6-8-1, 19 points)
\nCrumbled in the later stages to the Quakes and watched the Galaxy leapfrog them in the standings.\u00a0 A win at home against the re-energized Timbers would be big. (Brian \u2013 15) \u2026 Another rough loss for the Rapids, albeit against the best team in the league. (Sean \u2013 13)<\/p>\n

15. PORTLAND TIMBERS<\/strong> (4-6-4, 16 points)
\nSend Seattle to its seventh-straight game without a win in an exciting 2-1 win at JELD-Wen. Kris Boyd comes alive and if Portland cane use the Cascadia Cup clash as a springboard, they could be dangerous this summer. (Brian \u2013 14) \u2026 Big win for the Timbers over a struggling Seattle, but they\u2019ll need to build off it if they are to move up the standings. (Sean \u2013 15)<\/p>\n

16. CHIVAS USA<\/strong> (5-7-4, 19 points)
\nAt some point, the attack \u2013 which has scored only 11 goals \u2013 has to get clicking, right? Well, a 2-1 win over Montreal was promising. The 0-0 draw in Dallas? Not so much. Oh, those Goats. Inconsistent as ever. (Brian \u2013 16) \u2026 Three points against Montreal was big, but dire scoreless draw in Dallas shows Chivas hasn\u2019t turned the corner yet. (Sean \u2013 16)<\/p>\n

17.<\/strong> (+1) PHILADELPHIA UNION<\/strong> (3-8-2, 11 points)
\nWho saw that coming? A 4-0 bashing of the boys from the BBQ Capital of the World gives the Union a brief moment of joy amid a tumultuous season. (Brian \u2013 17) \u2026 Big win for Philadelphia, yet they were still out-possessed, lost the duels battle, outshot and essentially beat out in every statistical category. Fluke? (Sean \u2013 17)<\/p>\n

18.<\/strong> (-1) FC DALLAS<\/strong> (3-9-5, 14 points)
\nThe winless streak extended to 11 with a 0-0 draw against Chivas USA was tough to watch. Warning: their July 4th match against Toronto may cause blindness. (Brian \u2013 18) \u2026 Couldn\u2019t find the goal they needed to beat Chivas, but if we\u2019re looking for positives, they avoided getting any cards. (Sean \u2013 18)<\/p>\n

19. TORONTO FC<\/strong> (1-10-2, 5 points)
\nTwo straight games with two-goal leads produces only two points. The grave\u2019s been dug.\u00a0 Let the dirt shower over you, Toronto.\u00a0 (Brian \u2013 19) \u2026 Two draws would be a positive for Toronto, if not for the fact they blew two goal leads in both. (Sean \u2013 19)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

San Jose claims the throne in our weekly rankings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":12002,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nesoccertoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/05\/earthquakesfeature.jpg?fit=490%2C240&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13147"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13147"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13147\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13153,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13147\/revisions\/13153"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nesoccertoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}