Actually one of the voters attempted to put DCU in Tier 5. Which we probably deserve overall. But this just didn’t seem to be the right week to do it considering we just beat a playoff team on the road.

1 had only DCU and Houston in Tier 4
1 added Chivas.

To get a point means that at least one voter thinks said team belongs in Tier 3

That would solve the problem. I believe these Tier names were come up with in week 1. Brings up a good point on the voting.

and there is no scrum for the last playoff spot even. Last year you had 6 teams fighting for the last spot on the last day of the season.

It’s really Haves and Have-Nots, isn’t it?

On paper, you’d say there are 6 “good” teams: RSL, Dallas, NY, LA, Seattle, and Columbus. The Crew seem to be a totally spent force at this point, though. In my opinion, it would be a shock if they get past the first round of the playoffs. The lack of a ruthless goalscorer and their overall lack of energy at this point in the season will kill them off.

San Jose and Colorado both strike me as teams with issues in the back and with consistency. Both teams are usually well-drilled and organized, but they lack standout defenders. Would any starting defender from either team find a start for the defenses of the top five? Other than Jason Hernandez and Drew Moor possibly being able to displace Carlos Mendes, the answer would be a firm no. I’m not saying these two teams have no hope (San Jose’s options in the attack are quite nice, and Colorado has the best pair of forwards in MLS), but the odds are stacked against them.