DiffeRANCHals: 2025 Round 18

 

 

 

 

Every week, we’ll go over our suggestions from last week, and determine if they were a good or bad pick based on position and points. To describe in detail the ranking system, here is the metric: bust = 3 or fewer points (or did not play), average = 4-5 points, good = 6-8 points, great = 9+ points. Double gameweeks (DGWs) are scored as follows: bust = 6 or fewer points (or not starting/on the bench), average = 7-9 points, good = 10-12 points and great = 13+ points. Players not available for selection are disregarded and not counted as either a positive or a negative in the article.

Week 17 Results:

Matt:

• Dagur Thorhallsson – Good (7 points)
• Alexey Miranchuk – Average (4 points)
• Felipe Mora – Good (6 points)

Ranch:

• Derrick Williams – Bust (1 points)
• Daniel Salloi – Bust (0 points)
• Zavier Gozo – Great! (9 points)

Meg:

• Logan Ndenbe – Bust (0 points)
• Ondreg Lingr – Great! (10 point)
• Daniel Rios – Average (5 points)

Matt Results: 5 Great, 11 Good, 9 Average, 20 Bust

Ranch Results: 8 Great, 14 Good, 5 Average, 19 Bust

Meg Results: 2 Great, 3 Good, 3 Average, 10 Busts

2025 Full Season Results: 15 Great, 28 Good, 17 Average, 49 Busts (55%)

 

Welcome back to diffeRANCHals! With a DGW looming and international games still being played, this is a perfect week to take a look at differentials. There are plenty of options this week, so even if you don’t like the players that we suggest, still take a chance on a differential. Anyways, let’s get into it!

Ranch: Kyle Duncan, $7.8m (Defender – NYRB)

Okay hear me out… I know NYRB is not typically the team people are looking at for a good clean sheet chance. I also know that they have an away game to start. However, the teams that NYRB are playing are Toronto and Minnesota. Toronto is a team who has up and down games. You will see later that I contradict myself with this pick, however I do still think Duncan is a viable play this week. He is versatile in the attack, there are decent clean sheet chances, and Duncan typically plays both games in a DGW. Proceed with caution.

Matt: DeJuan Jones, $7.1m (Defender – San Jose)

This is the week you are going to want to get San Jose attackers right. Many are considering Chicho as a captain this week and Espinoza as another piece of attacking coverage. In a season where CSs are hard to come by, I love leaning into a player like Jones for his attacking upside. San Jose starts on the road in Dallas, which could be tough game, but ends it with a Cali Classico game at home against the Galaxy, which should give Jones plenty of chances to get forward. My main concern with Jones is the potential for rotation, but after having a little time off from their away trip to Portland, I’m hoping Jones is ready to start for both.

Meg: Nicolas Romero, $9.1m (Defender – Minnesota)

Minnesota has a decent shout this week for CS despite being 1 home game and 1 on the road. Romero tends to pose an attacking threat and out of all the Minny defenders, has scored the most bonus points to this point in the season. Houston tends to struggle on the road so hopefully Romero’s first game brings in a CS plus more and that second game on the road against NYRB could really go either way but let’s stay positive and hope Romero snags a goal or some insane amount of bonus points. =]

Ranch: Federico Bernardeschi, $10.6m (Midfielder – Toronto)

As I stated above, I am contradicting myself with the Duncan pick, because I also really like Federico Bernardeschi this week. He has double home games against some suspect defensive teams. Bern starts by hosting the Red Bulls, which I am hoping for good bonus points in this game. Then on the weekend, Portland travels one of the furthest distances in sports to arrive in Toronto. This massive travel is a great way for Bernardeschi and company to run rampant. I love his chances this week.

Meg: Ignatius Ganago, $7.9m (Midfielder – New England Revolution)

Yes! Carles Gil is in most lineups and is also a captain choice due to having double home games this week but what about Ganago instead orrr maybe you want to double up? Ganago tends to line up as a center striker for the Revs and the chemistry between him and Gil is solid. I really like Ganago’s chances of scoring goals at home against two shaky road defenses of Nashville and Colorado.

Matt: Caden Clark, $4.0m (Midfielder – Montreal)

Montreal is having a rough season. But whenever there is a team with two home games during a DGW, they deserve some consideration. That is why I am floating Caden Clark out there. Owusu will be the chalkier pick if you were going to choose someone from Montreal, but I think Clark has a lot of upside as well. There is a potential that he will be on set pieces with Sealy out with Trinidad and Tobago (at least for game 1) and Duke being listed as questionable and he is going to have to put a lot of the creativity on his back against Cincinatti Wednesday and NYCFC on Saturday, both of which who have had their defensive struggles at times. Plus, if you are struggling with budget, Clark at $4.0 is handy as well.

Meg: Joao Klauss, $7.2m (Forward –  St. Louis City)

You might think this differential is point chasing but respectfully speaking it is not. Sure, I would love for Klauss to snag another hattrick this week but truthfully I would be happy with a solid performance in both games this week! STL is at home vs Orlando and then journeys down to Houston for a road match. I think he is a solid play this week if you are like me and just not sold on who to run as your forwards this week.

Ranch: Jacen Russel-Rowe, $6.9m (Forward – Columbus)

When there are good matchups, people pick the most obvious pick. This week, that is Diego Rossi. With Rossi being such a chalky pick, I want you to keep your eyes on the primary target up top, Jacen Russel-Rowe. Although he hasn’t scored since week 13, JRR is still a very viable threat with Columbus hosting both Atlanta and Philly this week. If you believe in playing the “second forward” for a differential, JRR is your guy!

Matt: Kelvin Yeboah, $8.4m (Forward – Minnesota)

With Tani still with the Canadian Men’s National Team, Yeboah should be leading the line for Minnesota. They will start this DGW by hosting the Houston Dynamo and then traveling to take on the NYRB. Yeboah has shown he is always goal dangerous and if he is getting the right service from the players around him, he will have chances. The first game at home against Houston is the one you probably want Yeboah the most for, but I could see NYRB shipping multiple goals as well.

---

Contributors: 
Tyler Norman, @Ranchinator on Discord
Matt Nelson, @Tinkerman on Discord
Megan Lee Turner, @Meg on Discord