MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 22

MLS Fantasy Rankings: Week 22

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 22. 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.

Forwards

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Carlos VelaLAFC at NE13.0There's a little extra motivation for Bob Bradley in this one, I imagine. That likely flows through to the rest of the squad, including an unbenchable Vela.
2Josef MartinezATL v. LA12.9Josef's scoring streak is absurd. With Open Cup on Tuesday, he could sub off early, but I'm not going to overthink this one.
3Alberth ElisHOU v. CHI10.2He's nice and rested, at least!
4Diego RossiLAFC at NE10.4 
5Wayne RooneyDC v. PHI10.8 
6Gustavo BouNE v. LAFC10.3He's been shooting at will. Let's see how New England do against a quality opponent, before buying all in on their fantasy resurgence.
7Brian FernandezPOR at MIN11.1Deflated Timbers rankings will be a theme this week due to the upcoming US Open Cup rematch between these two sides, but if they trot out a full strength lineup, I'd bump the stars up a notch or two.
8Heber Araujo dos SantosNYC at RSL9.9Maxi Moralez is out for this match, but NYCFC still have the tools to compete and Heber is riding a 5-game scoring streak.
9Jozy AltidoreTOR at NYRB10.6The Red Bulls defense has been entirely underwhelming for a few weeks now.
10Mauro ManotasHOU v. CHI8.8 
11Chris WondolowskiSJ v. CLB7.4 
12Jordan MorrisSEA v. SKC8.9Ruidiaz is likely not playing this one, but Seattle will still find chances.
13Adama DiomandeLAFC at NE9.5 
14Kacper PrzybylkoPHI at DC7.5 
15Fredy MonteroVAN at FCC7.5Vancouver's bright spots have been brighter than FCC. I think the Whitecaps take a point on the road, at least.
16Alexandru MitritaNYC at RSL8.1 
17Kei KamaraCOL v. MTL7.4 
18Romell QuiotoHOU v. CHI7.6 
19Maximiliano UrrutiMTL at COL6.0Urruti now has too much talent surrounding him in the lineup to ignore, even given his largely quiet season so far.
20Gyasi ZardesCLB at SJ8.7 

Midfielders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1VakoSJ v. CLB8.7He has less projected bonus points than many in the top-10 here, but the streak he has been on is undeniable and I plan on rolling with it until we have evidence it's cooling off.
2Nicolas LodeiroSEA v. SKC12.4Despite being really poor lately, a desperate SKC team still scares me a bit, but Lodeiro at home is as safe as it gets for fantasy considerations.
3Alejandro PozueloTOR at NYRB11.7Poz may have to be a cap casualty in fantasy this week, but when Toronto are at full strength, it's really tough to leave him out of a fantasy lineup.
4Magnus ErikssonSJ v. CLB9.7 
5Cristian EspinozaSJ v. CLB9.4 
6Carles GilNE v. LAFC12.3New England have been really impressive lately, but the opponents have been among the weaker sides in MLS. I'm expecting a bit of a shift back toward reality here for them, but Gil remains a solid play regardless of matchup each week.
7Julian GresselATL v. LA9.1 
8Eduard AtuestaLAFC at NE11.4 
9Jan GregusMIN v. POR9.6Reliable and gets a boost if Minnesota go full-strength and Portland toss out a weakened lineup due to the upcoming US Open Cup rematch.
10Ignacio PiattiMTL at COL10.0With Piatti back and Lappalainen bursting onto the scene, Montreal are suddenly interesting for fantasy.
11Pity MartinezATL v. LA9.4Barco may finally return to the lineup, potentially returning Atlanta's attack into the early-season quagmire that was the result of Pity and Barco wanting to operate in similar fashions and spaces. Add that FdB seems to love upsetting Pity (see the early sub vs. LAFC), and it's tough to trust this play even in a good matchup.
12Diego ValeriPOR at MIN12.2Given the uncertainty of Portland's lineup, and the Sunday kickoff for this match, I may not risk taking Timbers.
13NaniORL v. DAL9.0After the all-star game festivities and with US Open Cup on Tuesday, I would certainly recommend waiting to see Orlando's lineup before banking on them at all.
14Albert RusnakRSL v. NYC9.7 
15Daniel RoyerNYRB v. TOR9.2 
16Johnny RussellSKC at SEA8.2Nouhou is going to have his hands full with Russell. With SKC playing the last match of the weekend, Russell is unfortunately not optimal switcheroo material.
17Emmanuel LedesmaFCC v. VAN8.4 
18Marco FabianPHI at DC8.9 
19Saphir TaiderMTL at COL9.7 
20Yordy ReynaVAN at FCC7.6Appeals to me as an under the radar play with upside.

Defenders

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Florian JungwirthSJ v. CLB7.0Flo brings a little bit of everything to the table, but the virtually-guaranteed bonus points are most appealing.
2Miles RobinsonATL v. LA7.2No Zlatan for the Galaxy in this one makes Atlanta the heaviest favorite of the weekend by far, but with US Open Cup on Tuesday and LGP missing from the center of the defense, I wouldn't push my chips all in on Atlanta's defense.
3Kim Kee-HeeSEA v. SKC6.6SKC are desperate for points, but I trust this group of Seattle defenders even if it's not Schmetzer's first choice.
4Romain MetanireMIN v. POR7.5Minnesota will also be hosting Portland on Wednesday for a US Open Cup semifinal, making this an interesting matchup between two teams on the positive side of the playoff picture, but not safely so. Portland could very well keep their cards close to the vest here, making Minnesota's defense an appealing option.
5Ike OparaMIN v. POR8.7 
6Tommy ThompsonSJ v. CLB7.1 
7Leonardo JaraDC v. PHI7.6 
8Nick LimaSJ v. CLB5.5Thanks to his US Open Cup trip, Lima's price is more palatable than his defensive partners'. Given how SJ play, he gets more opportunities for bonus points than many other "fullbacks".
9Franco EscobarATL v. LA6.1 
10Xavier ArreagaSEA v. SKC5.7With Roman Torres suspended for a positive PED test, Arreaga will be finally get some consistent action.
11Nouhou ToloSEA v. SKC4.4Brad Smith's loan has been extended, but after picking up a knock last week both him and Leerdam are questionable. Nouhou should get a chance to follow up a really good outing last match.
12Kendall WastonFCC v. VAN5.2Hosting Vancouver has been on of the more favorable matchups in the league this year, and Waston always is a set piece threat. Against his former team, he'll have a little more motivation to head one home.
13Saad Abdul-SalaamSEA v. SKC4.6SAS is good, but allow me to squeeze in a note to watch for Joevin Jones starting on the attacking wing in place of Harry Shipp. He'd be a top-5 defensive pick for me if that happens.
14Michael ParkhurstATL v. LA4.8 
15Reto ZieglerDAL at ORL7.7 
16Ali AdnanVAN at FCC5.4The Caps are bad, sure, but so are Cincinnati. With the home team here allowing roughly twice as many goals at home as they've scored, I'm ok taking a chance on this caliber of player.
17Michael BoxallMIN v. POR7.4 
18Ronald MatarritaNYC at RSL6.1 
19Zakaria DialloMTL at COL8.0 
20Maynor FigueroaHOU v. CHI6.1 

Goalkeepers

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Daniel VegaSJ v. CLB5.8The Quakes dominance has not resulted in many clean sheets, but I still love this matchup. The only issue is foregoing three San Jose field players.
2Stefan FreiSEA v. SKC6.7 
3Brad GuzanATL v. LA6.3 
4Przemyslaw TytonFCC v. VAN4.7Optimal front-end of a switcheroo at keeper.
5Pablo SisniegaLAFC at NE4.4Miller could rejoin the starters at any time and is significantly more expensive, so make sure you have a backup plan here.
6Bill HamidDC v. PHI6.6 
7Brian RoweORL v. DAL6.4 
8Tyler DericHOU v. CHI4.7Chicago are 0-3-8 on the road this year.
9Evan BushMTL at COL5.2 
10Steve ClarkPOR at MIN7.1Darwin Quintero will be out due to yellow card suspension. If Portland play a quality 11, Clark should be a decent (albeit too expensive) play.

Value Rankings

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

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Orji OkwonkwoMTL at COL6.7 
2Gary Mackay-StevenNYC at RSL6.2With Maxi out, there's a chance that Mackay-Steven finds his way into the lineup. His debut was very exciting. Keaton Parks also would be a good cheap play here, albeit with far less offensive upside.
3Lee NguyenNE v. LAFC7.1We need to make sure he starts, but his recent appearances have been very high quality and this is a big-time revenge game for Nguyen.
4Hwang In-beomVAN at FCC6.7 
5C.J. SapongCHI at HOU7.0 
6Cristhian ParedesPOR at MIN6.0A guaranteed price rise thanks to an offensive outburst, plus he is always good for some bonus points in the midfield.
7Memo RodriguezHOU v. CHI7.1 
8Rashawn DallyFCC v. VAN4.7 
9Jeremy EbobissePOR at MIN5.8 
10Benny FeilhaberSKC at SEA6.4 

Captain Rankings

RankPlayerMatchupPriceNotes
1Carlos VelaLAFC at NE13.0Josef has 12 goals in 8 games and Vela is still outscoring him during that stretch in fantasy.
2Josef MartinezATL v. LA12.9 
3VakoSJ v. CLB8.7Lodeiro is safer, but I just can't pass up the upside.
4Nicolas LodeiroSEA v. SKC12.4If Ruidiaz was fit and rolling, I'd probably have him third here.
5Alejandro PozueloTOR at NYRB11.7Poz pretty much needs to be a fixture in our captain considerations each week.

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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.
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