This article is part of our The Armband series.
One week ago in this article I said it was getting too easy to find the right player to captain and knew that would change soon. That's exactly how Week 5 of the MLS season played out with Houston and Seattle getting shut out at home, while Columbus only scored once in a home loss. Sure, Nicolas Lodeiro still had 11 fantasy points, but Federico Higuain had another poor home performance by reaching only four points. While Higuain has had some great matches, that's the second favorable spot in which he's underperformed, making him a harder captain to trust in the future.
Week 6 is meant for recovering, and it opens with New England, who are at home, against a suddenly stout Montreal back line that has held both Seattle and Toronto scoreless in recent matches. Cristian Penilla is worth a look for the armband, but there are far better options.
The game most people will flock to is Atlanta hosting LAFC. The home team has scored seven goals in two home matches, while there have been 14 total goals in three LAFC matches this season. Miguel Almiron is usually my favorite in these spots because he's around the ball more than most. He didn't score or assist last match, but still had eight fantasy points against Minnesota. Josef Martinez has more upside, though due to goal dependency he is always a threat to let down, as seen in his three fantasy points last match. Those two get the nod above Carlos Vela and Diego Rossi at home, especially with this being LAFC's first match away from the west coast.
There aren't many more matchups that stand out in terms of finding a trustworthy captain. Chicago and Columbus could produce a few goals, but the Fire haven't played well in the early season and the Crew haven't allowed a road goal yet. If you want to go Nemanja Nikolic or Higuain, that's fine, but I won't be on your side. I'm more inclined to give the armband to Dom Dwyer after he scored twice in 64 minutes last weekend. Portland's road journey finishes with the match at Orlando City, who have given up multiple goals in three of four contests. If you still don't trust Dwyer yet, Sacha Kljestan is good for at least five fantasy points.
Felipe Gutierrez would've been another possibility, but he is questionable after playing only 53 minutes last match due to a pelvic issue. If you want to have more fun, Zlatan Ibrahimovic will probably be a top captain, as it's possible he starts this match. That said, there's a chance Romain Alessandrini is healthy again, and he'd likely be a safer captain pick.
Philadelphia haven't scored in their last two, but I'm not sure that will continue at home against San Jose. This is a perfect spot for C.J. Sapong to find his scoring boots again, yet he's another player who comes with risk having just six total fantasy points in the last two matches.
Real Salt Lake are home against Vancouver, and that result may be the hardest to project this weekend. RSL have been all over in terms of early results from giving up eight goals combined to LAFC and Toronto to keeping the Red Bulls scoreless. It's the same for Vancouver, who recently won at Columbus, but lost 4-1 at Atlanta before that. Albert Rusnak makes the most sense for the home side, though he's yet to surpass 10 fantasy points. It's a similar situation on the other side with Kei Kamara, who usually doesn't provide much else outside of goals.
Dallas maybe have the easiest fixture on the surface, but the Rapids are coming off a clean sheet and a bit of confidence. The other problem with captaining someone from Dallas is that no one has been consistent, partly due to two 1-1 draws at home. Mauro Diaz makes sense, but he hasn't surpassed eight fantasy points in a match this season, while Maximiliano Urruti is goal dependent and Roland Lamah can't really be trusted yet.
