This article is part of our The Armband series.
There were goals everywhere in Week 27, with two surprises leading the way in Vako and Maximiliano Urruti, who both scored 26 fantasy points. Carlos Vela (19 FP) was surprisingly one of the best with only one match, while my favorite captain choices Sebastian Giovinco (13 FP) and Luciano Acosta (16 FP) did enough. Of course, the Red Bulls changed most of their lineup in the midweek match, so players like Bradley Wright-Phillips (two FP) became almost worthless.
It's close to the opposite in Week 28 because we have only four matches. Conveniently, NYC FC plays twice and will likely be the favorite for the armband unless some Portland fans decide to roll with Diego Valeri. The clear choice from NYC is Maximiliano Moralez because he has a better floor and is more likely to play a full 90 in both matches. David Villa is always a threat to score, but having dealt with multiple injuries this year, he may not start two games in one week (or three in eight days). Moralez plays a full 90 almost every match, and while his numbers haven't been as good over the last few, he's still a lock to hit six fantasy points at home, something he's done in every opportunity this season. Villa is close to that number when he starts, but I'm not willing to risk him. If he starts Wednesday's match, he makes more sense, though I'm still rolling with Moralez.
Even better, the two home matches are against teams that have a combined 2-10-15 road record and a 38-56 score line. If for some reason you want to fade the two most popular options, Anton Tinnerholm is the most likely to start both matches. In addition to a clean sheet possibility, he gets forward a lot and has three assists in the last five games. The downside is that his floor is closer to one or two points, making him harder to trust over one of the attacking players. Alexander Ring is only in the conversation because he'll play 180 minutes, and there's a chance he only hits six points.
For those who hate captaining players with two matches, Kansas City (v. ORL) and Portland (v. COL) are both at home. Diego Rubio is away on international duty, which makes it even harder to back a Sporting player unless you think Felipe Gutierrez returns to his early season form. Giving the armband to Graham Zusi means you're hoping for a clean sheet and assist, at a minimum. Valeri makes more sense than those two even if he's on a bit of a slow run. After sitting last match, he'll be ready at home against the Rapids, a team that's scored nine and given up 23 on the road. But while 10 fantasy points looks like a good bet from him, it still doesn't compare to 180 minutes of Moralez.
