MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 21

MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 21

This article is part of our MLS Fantasy Rankings series.

The rankings below are based on Major League Soccer's official fantasy game and cover all games in Week 21. While they can be used for DFS purposes, they are done with a focus on the league's season-long game.

If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below, or hit up JD on Twitter @dfsMLS.

Additional comments will be added later

Forwards

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Carlos VelaLAFC v. ATL12.5Vela is virtually matchup-proof at this point, but even if he weren't Atlanta have been weaker defensively over the past handful of games. 
2Brian FernandezPOR v. LA10.9Jozy has the better fixture and Zlatan is fresh off of a hat trick, but Fernandez and the Timbers are finding ways to win games. I'm impressed every time I watch Fernandez.
3Jozy AltidoreTOR v. FCC10.5A healthy Pozuelo gives Jozy an arguement for #1 spot, while no Pozuelo would leave me bumping him down a few notches.
4Heber Araujo dos SantosNYC v. SKC9.5 
5Zlatan IbrahimovicLA at POR10.5Portland have gutted out some impressive efforts defensively here in mid-season, but it's tough to envision them stopping a relatively healthy Galaxy side, with Zlatan carrying some momentum from last week.
6Carlos Darwin QuinteroMIN v. VAN10.0Quintero has been back on the score sheet lately, but he's still not quite back to picking up all the underlying things that made him a reliable fantasy force.
7Josef MartinezATL at LAFC12.5It's tough to put somebody in such great form this low, but the opponent is intimidating and we have better options.
8Gustavo BouNE v. ORL9.8He could be higher in the rankings this week, but I'd rather not overreact to the new kid on the block quite yet. Let's see how this Revs formation starts to shake out after Bruce threw something a little different onto the field last game.
9Chris WondolowskiSJ v. COL7.2 
10Diego RossiLAFC v. ATL10.7 
11Wayne RooneyDC at CHI11.1 
12Raul RuidiazSEA at HOU11.2 
13Adama DiomandeLAFC v. ATL9.0 
14Jesus FerreiraDAL v. RSL6.8Now that we have the star talent out of the way in that top-13, Ferreira would make for a pretty good cheap third forward. 
15Kacper PrzybylkoPHI at MTL8.0 
16Mason ToyeMIN v. VAN6.5Not guaranteed to start and I don't think he's part of an optimal Minnesota trio for our fantasy teams, either, given their chances of keeping a clean sheet.
17Jordan MorrisSEA at HOU8.6 
18C.J. SapongCHI v. DC7.3 
19Dominique BadjiDAL v. RSL6.9 
20Kei KamaraCOL at SJ7.9 

Midfielders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Alejandro PozueloTOR v. FCC11.4I'm skeptical he returns from his ankle injury in a game TFC should be able to win without him, but if he's fit enough to play then he has to be in your lineup.
2VakoSJ v. COL8.2When a player puts up back to back double-digit shot outings on a team that is confidently mowing down opponents, I'm just going to get out of the way and glue them to the top of the rankings.
3Carles GilNE v. ORL11.8Stock is high on a rising Revs group. With a potential shift away from his central positioning in favor of Bou, I am keeping a close eye on Gil and whether his influence remains quite as immense as it has been.
4Cristian EspinozaSJ v. COL8.9 
5Magnus ErikssonSJ v. COL9.2The Quakes have to considered heavily in this matchup, and not using all three spots seems like a mistake.
6Nicolas LodeiroSEA at HOU12.5With Manotas on the way out and Elis serving a suspension, Seattle are primed to take three road points here.
7Maximiliano MoralezNYC v. SKC12.1Huge fan of Maxi this week and every week, but there's some stiff competition above here and SKC, even this version of them, are capable of clogging up an away game.
8Diego ValeriPOR v. LA11.7 
9Eduard AtuestaLAFC v. ATL11.2 
10Jonathan OsorioTOR v. FCC8.8I'm going to cheat and also include Michael Bradley here - a few spots under Osorio, but I wanted to squeeze some other guys into the rankings.
11Saphir TaiderMTL v. PHI9.9Piatti returned to action on Wednesday and scored, but Taider should still be front and center for much of the match this weekend.
12Marco FabianPHI at MTL8.9 
13Nicolas GaitanCHI v. DC9.7Consider me late to the Gaitan is somewhat unpredictable on a weekly basis party.
14KakuNYRB v. CLB8.5 
15Daniel RoyerNYRB v. CLB9.1 
16Sebastian BlancoPOR v. LA10.7 
17Jan GregusMIN v. VAN9.8Heavy favorite? Check. Some set pieces? Check. Midfield boss? Check.
18NaniORL at NE9.1 
19Pity MartinezATL at LAFC9.8I realize the matchup is poor, but Pity is coming off of a big game against DC United, scores or assists more often than he doesn't, and Atlanta feel up for this high profile match. If I had unlimited budget, he would be on my bench Friday night. Since I should be ranking responsibly, he comes in marginally lower.
20Paxton PomykalDAL v. RSL8.8Seems about 50/50 to return this weekend, but if he does the matchup is pretty good.

Defenders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Romain MetanireMIN v. VAN7.0Best blend of offense and clean sheet chance this weekend if you can afford it.
2Ike OparaMIN v. VAN8.4I would not pay $8.4 for Ike at this point in the season, but more power to you if you can squeeze it!
3Omar GonzalezTOR v. FCC7.5FCC have a negative 21 goal differential on the road this year.
4Hassani DotsonMIN v. VAN5.9 
5Tommy ThompsonSJ v. COL6.7 
6Nick LimaSJ v. COL5.1Make sure you budget a little extra in case he doesn't start, but I like this value a good deal.
7AuroTOR v. FCC6.5 
8Michael Amir MurilloNYRB v. CLB6.0Columbus have been both dreadful and offensively unadventurous on the road this year and things aren't particularly looking up.
9Anton TinnerholmNYC v. SKC7.1 
10Ronald MatarritaNYC v. SKC6.1 
11Florian JungwirthSJ v. COL7.0 
12Aaron LongNYRB v. CLB7.0 
13Michael BoxallMIN v. VAN6.9 
14Reto ZieglerDAL v. RSL7.2Dallas may fly under the radar this week as a team to get slight defensive exposure to. 
15Ryan HollingsheadDAL v. RSL8.0 
16Justin MorrowTOR v. FCC5.7 
17Walker ZimmermanLAFC v. ATL6.9 
18Guram KashiaSJ v. COL6.0 
19Antonio DelameaNE v. ORL6.4 
20Reggie CannonDAL v. RSL5.7 

Goalkeepers

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Vito MannoneMIN v. VAN6.5 
2Daniel VegaSJ v. COL6.0 
3Quentin WestbergTOR v. FCC6.5 
4Luis RoblesNYRB v. CLB5.8 
5Matt TurnerNE v. ORL5.4 
6Jesse GonzalezDAL v. RSL6.6 
7Sean JohnsonNYC v. SKC5.9 
8Tyler MillerLAFC v. ATL6.0 
9Steve ClarkPOR v. LA6.6 
10Bill HamidDC at CHI6.2 

Value Rankings

(forwards and midfielders under $7.5, defenders under $6.0; not ranked above)

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Alexander RingNYC v. SKC7.5 
2Juan AgudeloNE v. ORL7.0Depending on the starting lineup, both Agudelo and Diego Fagundez could be values. There may not be a place for them in a suddenly-crowded midfield, though.
3Kemar LawrenceNYRB v. CLB5.5 
4Cristian CasseresNYRB v. CLB6.8 
5Bryan AcostaDAL v. RSL6.4If Pomykal is out, I like Acosta a little more.
6Andrew FarrellNE v. ORL5.2 
7Marc RzatkowskiNYRB v. CLB6.9 
8Tsubasa EndohTOR v. FCC4.7Pretty good chance he bumps back to the bench this game, but it depends on the health of some Minnesota midfielders.
9Chase GasperMIN v. VAN4.8Good chance he goes back to the bench, but if not the price is tasty.
10DeJuan JonesNE v. ORL5.0 

Captain Rankings

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Carlos VelaLAFC v. ATL12.5 
2Alejandro PozueloTOR v. FCC11.4 
3Brian FernandezPOR v. LA10.9 
4Jozy AltidoreTOR v. FCC10.5 
5VakoSJ v. COL8.2 

RotoWire Community
Join Our Subscriber-Only Soccer Chat
Chat with our writers and other RotoWire Soccer fans for all the pre-game info and in-game banter.
Join The Discussion
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JD Bazzo
JD is a former RotoWire contributor. He was a finalist for the 2017 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year award. JD had been writing for RotoWire since 2015. He is a proud Pittsburgh native, purveyor of fantasy sports, and likely the first Penn State Basketball fan you've ever met.
Champions League Best Bets: Picks, Odds & Predictions for Tuesday, Nov. 5
Champions League Best Bets: Picks, Odds & Predictions for Tuesday, Nov. 5
Champions League Betting Picks & Predictions for Matchday 4
Champions League Betting Picks & Predictions for Matchday 4
Fantrax Finds & Sleeper Adds: Waiver Wire Pickups for Gameweek 11
Fantrax Finds & Sleeper Adds: Waiver Wire Pickups for Gameweek 11
Premier League Preview Tottenham vs. Aston Villa Predictions, Odds, & Notes
Premier League Preview Tottenham vs. Aston Villa Predictions, Odds, & Notes
DraftKings DFS Preview for Saturday, Nov. 2: Pick And Choose
DraftKings DFS Preview for Saturday, Nov. 2: Pick And Choose
DraftKings DFS EPL Picks for Saturday, Nov. 2
DraftKings DFS EPL Picks for Saturday, Nov. 2