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If you've slogged through the MLS season playing daily fantasy, you've probably gotten tired of seeing so many contests with only a pair of games taking place. In the MLS schedule, it's an inevitable occurrence to have the games spread throughout the week. Savvy players can capitalize on which teams are playing twice in a week and which teams will be fresh off a bye week, but the contests rarely test daily fantasy enthusiasts with a full offering teams to choose from.
Well for those of you that have been hankering for a true challenge, you are about to be rewarded this Sunday. The MLS is on it's last day of fixtures for its regular season -- and all 20 teams are playing on the same day.
As we head into the MLS playoffs, you have to consider that not all of the teams playing on Sunday are still actively playing for anything but pride. The MLS, after all, isn't a promotion / relegation league. But there are still playoff spots up for grabs, and you should be able to find enough players that will be sufficiently motivated to turn in a good performance.
There are several strategies to consider for this weekend. For starters, do you dare try to find the one team with the greatest mismatch and load up on their talent? Or do you hedge your bet a little bit and take advantage of the 20 teams in action to build a rainbow team out of your 11 roster spots? Furthermore, can you trust in three strikers, or is the better bet to find defenders who will be looking to simply maintain their teams' positioning in the standings?
There is a lot to consider. So let's just get to it.
The match-ups and current rankings
The top six teams from each conference will qualify for the playoffs. Below is each match for the weekend along with their current rankings to give you a bit of context about the battles for positioning still taking place for playoff qualification. Note that Eastern Conference games kick off at 5PM ET, and the Western Conference games kick off at 7PM ET.
Eastern Conference
NYCFC (8) v New England (6) --
NYCFC are already officially eliminated from playoffs
Columbus (3) v DC (2) --
Kei Kamara and Federico Higuain are suspend for final game
Philadelphia (9) v Orlando (7) --
Philadelphia are officially eliminated, Orlando are mathematically alive
Montreal (5) v Toronto (4) --
Both teams have qualified, both will hope to improve position though
Chicago (10) v NYRB (1) --
Chicago are out, NYRB playing for Supporters Shield points
Western Conference
Portland (4) v Colorado (10) --
Colorado are out, Portland will look to secure a better ranking
SKC (6) v LA (2) --
SKC could drop out with a loss, LA need a win to ensure a first round bye in playoffs
Vancouver (3) v Houston (8) --
Houston are officially out, Vancouver could overtake 2nd place
Seattle (5) v RSL (9) --
RSL are already out, Seattle are looking to clinch their spot
Dallas (1) v San Jose (7) --
SJ need a win and help to qualify, Dallas playing for Supporters Shield
#1) GOALKEEPER AND DEFENDER TIPS
This week we aren't going to have the typical 'Clean Sheet Chances' and 'Attacking Potential' segments -- because in the final game of the year, all of that goes out the door. It's nearly impossible to say generally that any team isn't going to attack and defend with all the focus they can muster.
First off all, I'm not going to recommend any player (from any position) for a team that's already been mathematically eliminated. Those teams are going to be unpredictable in the lineups they trot out. Could Nick Rimando play a decent game for RSL even though they're eliminated? Sure. But will he even start? Does David Villa start for NYC now that they're knocked out? And even if players like this do start, is it for a ceremonial last lap around the pitch so that fans can applaud them one last time? How many of the stars from eliminated teams will realistically play past half time if they do get the nod? It's better to stick to teams that are still alive for postseason play.
And keeping with that philosophy,
Adam Kwarasey ($7.3) would be my first keeper of choice. Portland, already having risen to 4th place heading into this weekend, still haven't officially clinched their playoff spot. In a bizarre set of circumstances, Portland could rise to as high as 2nd in the West or drop completely out of the playoffs after the dust settles on Sunday. For that reason, I'm looking for Portland to play very stout defense against a woeful last place Colorado side.
Similarly, I like
Stefan Frei ($8.3) as another option. Seattle also haven't secured their playoff spot, and they'll face RSL at home this weekend. RSL have been a bit of a mixed bag, but being eliminated from the postseason means that they'll just naturally be playing with less drive than the Seattle side.
As for defenders, it's really wide open this weekend. You need to be a bit more precise with your goal keepers, but you can take a chance or two on a defender in the right match. You could reasonably slot any starting Portland or Seattle defender alongside their keeper as a natural pairing. But if you wanted to look a bit deeper than that, there are options available.
Taylor Kemp ($7.5) is a great choice from DC this weekend. Look at DC's situation: they're already in second place, so they have the first round bye if they can just hold Columbus off. And Columbus is going to be missing both Kamara and Higuain this weekend, thus DC shouldn't have to overextend themselves too much to control this game. You could even pair Kemp with his teammate
Sean Franklin ($7.3) and try for an easy exacta bet.
If you plan on playing a fourth defender, somebody like
Steven Beitashour ($7.6) from Vancouver could round out your back line nicely. Vancouver will be at home playing against a Houston side that hasn't been very consistent on the road. Vancouver will also be playing for a win and hoping for an LA loss to move into second place. So expect Vancouver to really shore things up this round.
#2) MIDFIELDER TIPS
Before we get into the picks, you should know that Portland superstar
Diego Valeri is suspended this week. So in lieu of Valeri, you can't go wrong with
Darlington Nagbe ($11.5). Not only is Nagbe on one of the pivotal teams this weekend -- he's also on a point scoring tear. Nagbe is averaging 9.5 points per game over his last five matches, and he's ranked second on the list of midfielders for Fouls Won. Nagbe will be central to the Timbers' plans this weekend if they hope to secure a victory.
Speaking of Fouls Won,
Matias Perez Garcia ($9.5) is now the top ranked midfielder in that category with 75 FW on the year. MPG just notched a goal in his game before last, and he really has cemented himself as the engine in the San Jose midfield. Simply put, before they can worry about what the other scorelines are, San Jose need to win to their match. But they know that if they win and SKC loses to LA, they'll be in the playoffs. Granted, they'll face a tough task in going up against Dallas, but that stiff competition will make them play just that much harder.
Moving to the East,
Sacha Kljestan ($11.6) is worth a look this weekend. Even though NYRB are in first place, they're still playing for the Supporters Shield, so expect them to come out to try to win this game. For a team with a first year coach, getting any kind of hardware would be a real achievement, so expect NY to really give it a good effort this weekend. Besides, the Red Bulls are playing last place Chicago. You could do worse than picking up one of the best midfielders in the game going up against the worst team in the league.
If you're looking for a budget pick in the middle,
Brad Evans ($7.0) from Seattle is a decent punt for his price. There really aren't a ton of super cheap mids that will be hammering for big points this weekend, but Evans should get you a steady return for his price. Evans is averaging 5.3 points per game over his last five, and I expect that he might try to move up a point or two over that average given the context of this game.
#3) FORWARD TIPS
Can we afford to look any further than
Sebastian Giovinco ($14.0)? Giovinco already won the Golden Boot for the year by default since Kei Kamara isn't playing. Even though both players are on 22 goals, Giovinco owns the tie-breaker due to his lead in assists. But do you think Giovinco wants to win the Golden Boot via tie-breaker? I think not. Expect Giovinco to at least come out and try for that first goal regardless of the outcome of the game. Because Toronto have already clinched their spot, I don't expect Giovinco to play all 90 minutes, but I do expect him to take his scoring chances to win his title outright.
Outside of the obvious Giovinco pick, I think
Robbie Keane ($14.7) is worth a look on the road this week. Sure, he's expensive, but he's really in the goals lately. He's scored four goals over his last three league fixtures, and there really doesn't seem to be a defensive answer to him right now. And LA will really be playing hard to wrap up the 2 seed this week. LA have some older stars that will want to have the first round off to freshen up. Given the fact that SKC are a complete mess right now (they conceded two goals to Colorado in their last game), I think Keane is an excellent choice this weekend.
#4) FORMATION TIPS
Here's the deal with the forwards in daily contests -- they're expensive. So you could add a
Fanendo Adi, Chris Wondolowski or even
Bradley Wright Phillips to your team. In truth, I could write a paragraph for about ten more players -- but to what end could we use all of that information? And I'm well aware of the fact that we haven't even covered a Dallas player yet -- and Dallas are just as motivated as NYRB to try for the Supporters Shield.
So with all of that being said, I think that most forwards with a big price tag will do ok for you this weekend. But if I had to choose just two players though, I'd go Giovinco and Keane -- and I would make my third pick a budget pick if I absolutely had to pick a third forward. But due to the cost of forwards right now, I'm thinking that a 3-5-2 is your best bet this weekend. The value is really with the mids right now in terms of price to point ratios. You could pick three forwards and play the standard 3-4-3, but you're really going to hamstring yourself in terms of budget.
Over the course of this year we've gotten very used to spending a lot on a set of three big forwards because the schedule of games was limited. In a 20 team field you're going to have to be a bit more disciplined. So keep that in mind going into this weekend.
Good luck everybody! We'll be back with more coverage in the playoffs, see you soon for some Daily Fantasy Football Tips.
