Another game week, another opportunity to pile on the points for Bruce Arena’s New England Revolution. And they did just that, consolidating their place on top of the Eastern Conference, the Supporters’ Shield standings and, most important, our Power Rankings. And with Sporting Kansas City on the cusp of losing a hugely influential cog in their midfield, the list of challengers to the Revs’ dominance is thinning.
So let’s get caught up with the rest of the action and see where your team sits in our Week 14 Power Rankings.
1. New England Revolution
Previous ranking: 1
Next MLS match: August 14 at Toronto FC, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Gustavo Bou scored his league-leading 11th goal of the campaign as the Revs beat Philadelphia to extend their unbeaten streak to six games — a stretch that includes five victories. New England is now 10 points ahead of its nearest rivals in the Eastern Conference, and six points clear at the front of the Supporters’ Shield race. — Austin Lindberg
2. Sporting Kansas City
Previous ranking: 2
Next MLS match: August 14 at FC Dallas, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
SKC completely dominated LAFC, 4-1, midweek before its offense fell flat at Colorado on Saturday (0-0). But the big news was the formal announcement that Homegrown midfielder Gianluca Busio has been transferred to Venezia in Italy’s Serie A in a deal that could eventually be worth more than $10 million. — Bonagura
3. Minnesota United
Previous ranking: 6
Next MLS match: August 14 vs LA Galaxy, 6 p.m. ET
Robin Lod and Brent Kallman scored in a comfortable 2-0 win against Houston that ran the Loons’ unbeaten streak to five matches. Minnesota has just one loss in its last 13 and looks more and more like a team capable of making a deep playoff run. — Bonagura
4. Seattle Sounders
Previous ranking: 5
Next MLS match: August 15 at Portland, 8:30 p.m. ET
The Sounders were off this weekend after a midweek draw with Dallas, but it was still a significant week with news that the team acquired 21-year-old Brazilian attacker Leo Chu and MLS veteran Nicolas Benezet on Transfer Deadline Day. Chu is an especially interesting player who was brought in using the league’s new U22 initiative. — Bonagura
5. New York City FC
Previous ranking: 3
Next MLS match: August 14 vs. Miami, 8 p.m. ET
Chicago and Toronto lie 11th and 14th, respectively, in the 14-team East. A double gameweek against such opposition could’ve yielded NYCFC six points, even with both matches occurring on the road. Instead, the Bronx side pocketed just two, settling for a scoreless draw at Soldier Field and letting an early two-goal lead slip in Ontario. That’s four points lost in an Eastern Conference that’s looking increasingly wide open behind New England. — Lindberg
6. Nashville SC
Previous ranking: 4
Next MLS match: August 15 vs. D.C., 7 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Going to Foxborough and picking up against league-leading New England is an impressive result for the second-year side. Following it up with a defeat at 2020 expansion cousins Miami, less so. — Lindberg
7. Colorado Rapids
Previous ranking: 7
Next MLS match: August 14 at Houston, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
It was a big week for the Rapids, who formally announced Sam Vines was transferred to Royal Antwerp in Belgium, while Canadian international Mark-Anthony Kaye made his debut in a scoreless draw against Sporting Kansas City after arriving in a trade from LAFC. Colorado has quietly built one of the best midfields in the league and is poised for a strong second half. — Bonagura
8. Orlando City
Previous ranking: 8
Next MLS match: August 18 at Nashville, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Orlando has won just two of its past eight, capped off with 1-1 draws against strugglers Cincinnati and Miami this week. The Lions are still second in the East, but on a run like that, it’s easy to see how New England has put 10 points between them. — Lindberg
9. Philadelphia Union
Previous ranking: 9
Next MLS match: August 18 vs. NYCFC, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Thirty-one minutes into his first MLS start, 17-year-old Paxten Aaronson scored his first MLS goal. Unfortunately for the Union, it came in a defeat to the Revolution, but the future is as bright as ever in Philadelphia. — Lindberg
10. LA Galaxy
Previous ranking: 11
Next MLS match: August 14 at Minnesota United, 6 p.m. ET
The Galaxy probably feel like they left some meat on the bone after a 1-1 draw with Vancouver, but it was a 4-point week (including a win against RSL) as Efrain Alvarez, Jonathan Dos Santos and Sebastian Lletget all returned from international duty. — Bonagura
11. D.C. United
Previous ranking: 13
Next MLS match: August 15 at Nashville, 7 p.m. ET
D.C. may sit just inside the bubble of the Eastern Conference’s playoff places, but wins against fellow playoff hopefuls Columbus and Montreal have the Black and Red just three points behind second place in an ever-tightening race to make the postseason. — Lindberg
12. Columbus Crew
Previous ranking: 10
Next MLS match: August 15 at Chicago, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Columbus has played five matches at its brand-new Lower.com Field home, and has won just once, including 4-2 and 3-2 defeats to D.C. and Atlanta, respectively. The reigning MLS Cup champions have now lost three in a row and have two wins in their past 10.— Lindberg
13 FC Dallas
Previous ranking: 16
Next MLS match: August 14 vs. Sporting Kansas City, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
A 1-1 draw against Seattle and a 2-0 win at home against Austin FC qualifies as a consecutive positive week for FC Dallas, which is unbeaten in a four-match stretch that included the three top teams in the Western Conference. Dallas is still below the playoff line, but if this form continues that won’t be the case for long. — Bonagura
14. LAFC
Previous ranking: 9
Next MLS match: August 15 at Atlanta United, 4 p.m. ET, ESPN
A patchwork backline resulted in one of LAFC’s worst-ever performances in a 4-1 loss midweek against Sporting Kansas City before a 2-1 loss at San Jose on Sunday. This is a team that started the year with clear MLS Cup expectations and now looks like it will be in a fight just to reach the postseason. — Bonagura
15. Portland Timbers
Previous ranking: 20
Next MLS match: August 15 vs Seattle, 8:30 p.m. ET, FS1
Losing Jeremy Ebobisse in a trade with San Jose is a tough pill for fans to swallow, but the Timbers went out and grabbed three points Saturday in a 3-2 win against Real Salt Lake. Dairon Asprilla, Yimmi Chara and Felipe Mora all bagged goals as the Timbers climbed to sixth in the Western Conference. — Bonagura
16. Real Salt Lake
Previous ranking: 15
Next MLS match: August 14 vs. Austin FC, 10 p.m. ET, ESPN+
RSL sit just below the playoff line — two points behind LAFC, but with a game in hand — after picking up one point in two games this week despite not scoring a goal. — Bonagura
17. CF Montreal
Previous ranking: 14
Next MLS match: August 14 vs. Red Bulls, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Twice this week Montreal scored first, against Atlanta it held a 2-0 lead with less than a half hour remaining, and yet twice this week Les Quebecois dropped points. They held on for a draw at home to Atlanta in midweek, and then fell 2-1 in D.C. — Lindberg
18. San Jose Earthquakes
Previous ranking: 18
Next MLS match: August 13 vs. Vancouver, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
If there is one thing Quakes fans can rely on under head coach Matias Almeyda it’s that there will be wild swings of form. San Jose’s 2-1 win against LAFC Sunday was the latest in a seven-match unbeaten streak that has included six of the seven teams currently in playoff position in the Western Conference. — Bonagura
19. Vancouver Whitecaps
Previous ranking: 19
Next MLS match: August 13 at San Jose, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
The Whitecaps are unbeaten in their last five matches — including four straight draws — but that hasn’t been enough to take them out of the bottom spot in the Western Conference. — Bonagura
20. New York Red Bulls
Previous ranking: 21
Next MLS match: August 14 at Montreal, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN+
With the midfield of the Eastern Conference tightening up, a loss in Chicago and a draw at home to Cincinnati aren’t results a playoff-hopeful side can afford. The Red Bulls are now winless in six and have won just once in their past nine. — Lindberg
21. Houston Dynamo
Previous ranking: 23
Next MLS match: August 14 vs. Colorado, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
No one in the Western Conference is reeling quite like the Dynamo, which extended its winless streak to 11 matches with losses to Austin (3-2) and Minnesota (2-0) last week. The three goals allowed against the in-state expansion club was a particularly bad look and leaves Houston with just a two-point cushion over the bottom spot in the conference. — Bonagura
22. Atlanta United FC
Previous ranking: 27
Next MLS match: August 15 vs. LAFC, 4 p.m. ET, ESPN and ESPN Deportes
The 12-match winless streak is over! After beating Columbus in the Ohio capital, Atlanta is 1W-2D-2L since Gabriel Heinze was dismissed, so maybe the Five Stripes’ standing of 10th in the East isn’t all on the former manager, but a first win in three months is reason enough to feel optimistic about a change in fortune for Josef Martinez, Ezequiel Barco & Co.— Lindberg
23. Chicago Fire
Previous ranking: 22
Next MLS match: August 15 vs. Columbus, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Chicago welcomed both New York clubs to town last week, taking three points off the Red Bulls in a 2-1 and sharing the spoils with NYCFC, pushing the Fire up to 11th in the East — two points off the foot of the table. — Lindberg
24. Inter Miami CF
Previous ranking: 25
Next MLS match: August 14 at NYCFC, 8 p.m. ET
Don’t look now, but Miami’s on the move. After losing six straight, the Herons are now unbeaten in their past five games, drawing with in-state rival Orlando midweek before hosting playoff hopeful Nashville and taking all three points off their expansion cousins. — Lindberg
25. Austin FC
Previous ranking: 24
Next MLS match: August 14 at Real Salt Lake, 10 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Austin broke out of its three-match goalless streak with a 3-2 win against Houston midweek, but followed that with a 2-0 loss at FC Dallas. All signs point to the expansion side missing the playoffs but it is still one hot streak away from making a push for the playoff line. — Bonagura
26. FC Cincinnati
Previous ranking: 26
Next MLS match: August 18 vs. Montreal, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN+
On Wednesday, Cincinnati’s scoreless streak reached 299 minutes after a 0-0 draw with the Red Bulls. On Friday, the club and GM Gerard Nijkamp “mutually agreed to part ways.” On Saturday, the goalless streak reached 341 minutes before Brenner netted in a 1-1 draw with Orlando. Amid the tumult, a 10-day break will do FCC well. — Lindberg
27. Toronto FC
Previous ranking: 17
Next MLS match: August 14 vs. New England, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Toronto’s 3-0 loss in Philadelphia was its first since firing manager Chris Armas on the Fourth of July. The Reds are 2W-4D-1L since, with a minus-1 goal differential despite their bounce back from a six-game losing streak, which helps illustrate why they’re still on the foot of the league table with the worst goal differential in MLS. — Lindberg
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