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 13. 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 | ||||
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Rank | Player | Matchup | Price | Notes |
1 | Carlos Vela | LAFC v. MTL | 14.9 | |
2 | Fredy Montero | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 8.0 | Vancouver's flight was delayed Tuesday and they were already planning some rotation, so it's anyone's guess as to which Whitecaps will start both games. Assuming Montero starts at New York, I'd feel ok about using a bench spot on him. |
3 | Jozy Altidore | TOR v. SJ | 10.9 | |
4 | Brian White | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 6.3 | BWP sounds possible for the game at Cincinnatti and Tom Barlow opened his goalscoring account last match. Meanwhile, White has just two shots on goal in 339 minutes (both goals). He'd be #2 if you guaranteed me 150+ minutes, but I will likely end up using my Red Bull spots on three other players. |
5 | Josef Martinez | ATL at RSL | 9.9 | |
6 | Carlos Darwin Quintero | MIN v. HOU | 10.6 | Despite a really disappointing run of form, Quintero at home shouldn't be totally disregarded. |
7 | Kacper Przybylko | PHI v. POR | 6.3 | Portland still have plenty of defensive flaws and Kacper's salary helps unlock a lot of other options. |
8 | Wayne Rooney | DCU at NE | 10.7 | |
9 | Heber Araujo dos Santos | NYC at CHI | 8.9 | If Wondo can dunk on the Fire for four goals... |
10 | Diego Rossi | LAFC v. MTL | 9.0 | Rossi excels on the counterattack but Montreal and their deep-lying set-up will not allow very many chances for that. |
11 | Brian Fernandez | POR at PHI | 10.0 | Fernandez should be ready for a debut start. Philly play good defense but is it enough to stop this Liga MX standout? |
12 | Mauro Manotas | HOU at MIN | 10.7 | |
13 | Kei Kamara | COL v. CLB | 9.3 | Kei has already had an extra bounce in his step since the sacking of Anthony Hudson. Now he gets to play his former club. |
14 | Latif Blessing | LAFC v. MTL | 9.1 | |
15 | Raul Ruidiaz | SEA at SKC | 9.7 | |
16 | Tesho Akindele | ORL v. LA | 6.2 | Tesho's brace gives him some good momentum coming into another solid matchup. There's a lot of good value at forward this week, though, so I don't envision him fitting into my side. |
17 | Tom Barlow | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 4.8 | I'd consider him if he starts on Wednesday, likely from my bench. |
18 | Angelo Rodriguez | MIN v. HOU | 7.2 | |
19 | Gyasi Zardes | CLB at COL | 7.6 | |
20 | Jesus Ferreira | DAL at VAN | 6.4 |
Midfielders | ||||
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Rank | Player | Matchup | Price | Notes |
1 | Daniel Royer | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 8.4 | Royer's offensive production and potential is significantly above Rzatkowski's. |
2 | Marc Rzatkowski | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 9.2 | I think the popular move will be to use 2-3 NYRB spots on defense and keeper. I'm leaning the same way, but with two good attacking matchups, justifying a second midfielder like Rza is pretty easy. |
3 | Hwang In-beom | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 7.1 | Just 22 years old, Hwang is still adjusting to the heavy burden placed on his shoulders in Vancouver. Despite some disappointing outings when the fantasy spotlight has been on him lately, I still think he deserves another chance during the DGW. |
4 | Kaku | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 7.1 | I'm tempted to rank the safe points of Sean Davis higher, but Kaku provides a little more upside at the expense of a likely 2-5 bonus point deficit over the double game week. |
5 | Sean Davis | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 6.9 | |
6 | Nani | ORL v. LA | 11.2 | Due to playing time concerns and the simple fact that Orlando aren't a good team, using Nani always feels risky. He has paid off more often than not, though, and this Galaxy team may struggle to keep possession. Nani should find a few scoring chances at the least. |
7 | Maximiliano Moralez | NYC at CHI | 10.8 | Maxi is in form and New York could have all their attacking pieces at their disposal this weekend. I'm not concerned about the short trip to a lifeless Chicago stadium. |
8 | Nicolas Lodeiro | SEA at SKC | 10.9 | |
9 | Mark-Anthony Kaye | LAFC v. MTL | 10.9 | |
10 | Carles Gil | NE v. DCU | 9.8 | |
11 | Aleksandar Katai | CHI v. NYC | 10.0 | |
12 | Diego Valeri | POR at PHI | 11.1 | |
13 | Johnny Russell | SKC v. SEA | 9.5 | Russell's fantasy stock has fallen and while still a good and perhaps popular play this weekend, I don't see the need to force him into your lineup. |
14 | Favio Alvarez | LA at ORL | 7.8 | The Argentine's debut for LA doesn't seem to be getting much buzz, but he looks like a player who can make an impact. Without Zlatan, the Galaxy will look to Alvarez for a spark on the road. |
15 | Felipe Gutierrez | SKC v. SEA | 8.9 | |
16 | Albert Rusnak | RSL v. ATL | 10.5 | |
17 | Jamiro Monteiro | PHI v. POR | 8.0 | With consistently good performances since earning the starting gig, Monteiro has earned a consistent look in our fantasy midfields. |
18 | Jonathan dos Santos | LA at ORL | 10.2 | JdS doesn't look fully healthy after a hamstring injury, but he played well enough last match to merit consideration. I also like Sebastian Lletget in the Galaxy midfield. |
19 | Pity Martinez | ATL at RSL | 8.6 | Having recently been left out of the Argentina squad for Copa America, Pity could have a little extra juice to his game this weekend. |
20 | Russell Teibert | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 5.9 | With Vancouver's midfield ailing, it's possible Teibert starts both matches in his typical defensively minded role. |
Defenders | ||||
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Rank | Player | Matchup | Price | Notes |
1 | Michael Amir Murillo | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 7.0 | Red Bulls fullbacks are the play this week with potentially none of their central defenders playing both matches. |
2 | Kemar Lawrence | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 5.7 | |
3 | Amro Tarek | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 6.8 | I don't think he's a lock for two starts, but it's pretty possible. Regardless, just one start would be acceptable given the two good matchups. |
4 | Ali Adnan | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 7.1 | Adnan has had quite the marathon of playing time since joining the Whitecaps. I'm not positive he will get both starts this week. |
5 | Erik Godoy | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 7.7 | |
6 | Derek Cornelius | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 4.4 | With Doneil Henry out for at least one game, the rangy Cornelius could be a cheap source of bonus points. |
7 | Walker Zimmerman | LAFC v. MTL | 9.9 | |
8 | Eddie Segura | LAFC v. MTL | 8.7 | |
9 | Romain Metanire | MIN v. HOU | 8.6 | |
10 | Ruan | ORL v. LA | 6.0 | Perhaps this week's best single game mix of attacking potential combined with a clean sheet chance. |
11 | Jordan Harvey | LAFC v. MTL | 8.4 | While Harvey is ranked due to more certain playing time, keep an eye on whichever cheaper option emerges if Beitashour misses due to injury as I expect. |
12 | Jake Nerwinski | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 5.8 | |
13 | Ike Opara | MIN v. HOU | 8.4 | |
14 | Jack Elliott | PHI v. POR | 8.6 | |
15 | Joevin Jones | SEA at SKC | 6.0 | I'd make sure to save enough that you can switch to another Sunday defender just in case he doesn't start. |
16 | Reto Ziegler | DAL at VAN | 8.0 | Vancouver aren't shy about conceding penalties and they'll be returning from a tiresome road trip. |
17 | Maxime Chanot | NYC at CHI | 8.8 | Tinnerholm, Matarrita, and Callens all are in play too. NYCFC have been good defensively of late and Chicago are somewhat overrated at this point. |
18 | Kai Wagner | PHI v. POR | 7.8 | |
19 | Brad Smith | SEA at SKC | 8.3 | |
20 | Auston Trusty | PHI v. POR | 6.9 | More expensive options like Chris Mavinga, or either Atlanta centerback are worthy of top20 spots too, but I'll stick with Philadelphia's clean sheet chances. |
Goalkeepers | ||||
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Rank | Player | Matchup | Price | Notes |
1 | Luis Robles | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 6.3 | Tim Parker will miss the Wednesday match due to his red card against Atlanta, and it seems that Aaron Long will be out for at least another game. Still, Robles has two quality matchups here and is pretty clearly the top goalkeeping option. |
2 | Maxime Crepeau | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 7.1 | Strangely, I think a lot of people will settle on Crepeau because they feel they need to use up their Vancouver slots. I'd just make sure to stick him on the bench and bank enough salary to move to one of the keepers in the final three matches of the week. |
3 | Tyler Miller | LAFC v. MTL | 7.9 | |
4 | Andre Blake | PHI v. POR | 6.4 | Holding the visiting Sounders scoreless gives me a little more confidence that Philadelphia can do the same against another lesser Cascadian side. |
5 | Brian Rowe | ORL v. LA | 6.6 | The Zlatan-less Galaxy couldn't score against Colorado. Rowe gives Tim Howard a run for his money in the competition for worst MLS starting keeper, but Orlando's defensive chances are pretty nice for this home match. |
6 | Bill Hamid | DCU at NE | 8.2 | Hamid's heroics in Toronto underscore his claims of superiority to some USMNT goalkeeping regulars. |
7 | Brad Guzan | ATL at RSL | 8.7 | Atlanta have only allowed one goal in their last six matches. |
8 | Sean Johnson | NYC at CHI | 8.0 | |
9 | Vito Mannone | MIN v. HOU | 7.5 | With Elis questionable due to a concussion, the Loons stand a chance at earning their 5th shut out of the season. |
10 | Stefan Frei | SEA at SKC | 7.9 | I don't rank a visiting keeper in Kansas City lightly, let alone ranking them before Tim Melia. Given Krisztian Nemeth's absence and SKC's recent scoring woes even when he's on the field, the defensively stout Sounders could keep a clean sheet here. |
Value Rankings | ||||
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(forwards and midfielders under $7.5, defenders under $6.0; not ranked above) | ||||
Rank | Player | Matchup | Price | Notes |
1 | Lucas Venuto | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 5.1 | |
2 | Felipe Martins | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 5.4 | He's hurt, but I can't imagine he wants to miss his return to Red Bull Arena. Felipe is a player that runs on passion and emotion which would either give us a steal at 5.4 or a red card and price drop! |
3 | Robin Jansson | ORL v. LA | 5.5 | Orlando could be a trap this week, but the Galaxy sans Zlatan and with a recovering Jonathan dos Santos are a pretty juicy opponent. |
4 | Cristian Penilla | NE v. DCU | 7.1 | |
5 | PC | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 4.4 | His playing time is a roll of the dice, but it could be a worthwhile flier if he starts even one match as an attacking wing or wingback. |
6 | Chris Wondolowski | SJ at TOR | 4.0 | |
7 | Andre Horta | LAFC v. MTL | 6.7 | With Atuesta nursing an injury, either Horta or Nguyen could earn another start. Given the favorable matchup and great prices, I think both are good options. |
8 | Federico Higuain | CLB at COL | 7.3 | It's probably just in my head, but Pipa v Kei always feels like it carries a little more weight since penalty-kick-gate. |
9 | Chris McCann | DCU at NE | 4.3 | |
10 | Giancarlo Gonzalez | LA at ORL | 4.9 | Gonzalez is far too good for this price. With the Galaxy missing some attacking punch, they have the defensive tools to bunker down and steal a clean sheet. |
Captain Rankings | ||||
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Rank | Player | Matchup | Price | Notes |
1 | Daniel Royer | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 8.4 | Best attacker on best DGW team. His two game average sits right around Vela's single game average but we should recognize the quality matchups for Royer as well as the general safety that comes with a two game sample as opposed to Vela's one. |
2 | Carlos Vela | LAFC v. MTL | 14.9 | Montreal are a lock to sit deep and make life hard for the LAFC attack, but there is enough quality there that I doubt they can stop them. |
3 | Michael Amir Murillo | NYRB v. VAN, at FCC | 7.0 | Picking a defender feels wrong, but I'd be surprised if there wasn't one clean sheet this week for New York and the chance for two isn't all that bad either. |
4 | Fredy Montero | VAN at NYRB, v. DAL | 8.0 | He's not a lock for two starts, but he's a good enough scorer for me to put him in the captain conversation assuming 150+ minutes. |
5 | Nani | ORL v. LA | 11.2 | I don't think the other DGW midfielders stand out above Royer, and I don't think another forward has a safe claim to a captain spot, so Nani is the next best thing. He feels risky, but the attacking output has been there in nearly every appearance. |