D.C. United Approval Ratings: Santino Quaranta

We're spending the first month or so of the D.C. United offseason grading each player on the roster with an approval rating. A vote for APPROVE means you were satisfied with the player's performance and want to see him back in D.C. next season. A vote for DISAPPROVE means you want United to move on without him. There is no middle ground, so please leave salary and contract implications out of your decision.

You heard all about him in our interview with Santino Quaranta this morning. We discussed his future in detail, but not his immediate past. Not until now. Even though Quaranta has officially retired from MLS, we can still give him one final grade for his final season.

He scored just one goal this season, coming in United's 4-1 loss to the Colorado Rapids early in the year. But Quaranta added four assists, and was often a catalyst in the attack playing either on the left wing, or occasionally elsewhere. But by the end of the season, he found himself third on the depth chart at that position, quite far behind the excellent Chris Pontius, and a step behind the replacement starter Austin Da Luz as well.

When Quaranta emerged as a substitute in the final six matches of the season, as he often did, the offense got an immediate kickstart. Quaranta was good for orchestrating at least one good chance per game. He may have been one of the only players to earn positive reviews during that final stretch, but United lost every one of those games. So how much credit can we really give Quaranta?

With Pontius injured and Da Luz starting, Quaranta served a vital role as an attacking substitute. But when Pontius is healthy, as we all hope he will be, where does Quaranta fit in? Well, apparently he didn't. Olsen made up his mind and cut formal ties with the veteran midfielder, and Quaranta made up his mind as well.