Round 24 DiffeRANCHals

Every week, I’m going to go over my 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 not starting/on the bench), average = 4-5 points, good = 6-8 points, great = 9+ points. Players not available for selection I am disregarding and not counting as a positive or negative in the article.

• Antonio Carlos – Great! (10 points)
• Steven Moreira – Average (5 points)
• Thiago Almada – Great! (12 points)
• Franco Fragapane – Good (6 points)
• Tosaint Ricketts – Good (6 points)
• Gabriel Pereira – Average (5 points)

Week 22 Final Results: 2 Great, 2 Good, 2 Average

Full Season Results: 19 Great, 23 Goods, 22 Average, 60 Busts

I apologize for missing the article for last week’s DGW. Life has been busy, and although I’ll try to write the article when possible, it may not be coming out every week from here on out. It truly will depend on my availability with my busy life of school, work, and home life. This week’s article features a few players that I am not fully confident about, so take it with a grain of salt. When looking at these players, I am thinking more about possible random picks that may be interesting instead of actually researching good differential picks for the week. Let’s get into it!

 

Graham Zusi, $7.5m (SKC Defender)

Zusi is an offensive threat against a San Jose team that is having some ups and downs. This is a weird matchup because SKC is scoring goals again and San Jose is still trying to give up the most goals in a season. I do believe that San Jose plays to the skill level of their opponents. They managed to beat LAFC 2-1 last week and drew Austin 3-3 two weeks ago, but lost 4-1 to Dallas and lost 1-2 at home to Houston. With SKC being lower in the standings, I see this as San Jose bowing to them, allowing a lot of offensive attacks and not attacking very often. Zusi should be involved in those attacks, along with Eric Thommy, another player in this article.

Maxime Chanot, $5.9m (NYCFC Defender)

This is a bit of a gut pick. NYCFC hasn’t been the best defensively and they are on the road. However, Orlando is going to be without their primary playmaker, Mauricio Pereyra, in this matchup. On the flipside, NYCFC is without Santiago Rodriguez. I think this will be a defensive battle between the two teams and likely end 0-0.

Erik Thommy, $8.6m (SKC Midfielder)

You read the whole spiel about how negatively I think about San Jose in the Graham Zusi section. Now, let’s think positively about SKC. What turned their season around to the point that they are now scoring multiple goals per game? They started to incorporate their new playmaking number 10, Erik Thommy, and their other new striker, William Agada. With Thommy providing service to a poacher like Agada, this SKC team is looking scary entering the playoffs. Reminds me a lot of Ryan Gauld last year with Vancouver.

Santiago Moreno, $9.7m (Portland Midfielder)

I love Cascadia Rivalry matchups. As much as it pains me to name a Portland player here instead of a Seattle player, I do firmly believe that Santiago Moreno is a great pick this week. There are so many options to choose in this blood-boiling rivalry that often throws up a couple of standout players when the teams meet. Last time these two teams matched up, the top scorers in the game were Niezgoda and Moreno. See where I’m going with this? I do also love Raul Ruidiaz for this matchup, though.

Luis Amarilla, $8.2m (Minnesota Forward)

This may be the closest to a chalk pick in this week’s article. Minnesota and Amarilla get to host a Houston team that is poor defensively. I love the idea of picking forwards that may not be fully in-form against a weak defensive team. Look at the history of my articles, I always name these types of players for breakout games. Will this be another breakout game for Amarilla? I sure hope so!

Jefferson Savarino, $10.8m (RSL Forward)

Hear me out. Jefferson Savarino is a great forward with a decent matchup. Might as well captain him, right?