Easily the best week went to Chicago’s John Thorrington. His late game-winner at home against Toronto gave voters little doubt about who to pick in this short week. I’ve said before, Thorrington is quickly becoming one of my new favorites in this league. His pace and energy on the field continues to show up. How this guy was nearly cut a while back is amazing too.

So week 16 goes to Thorrington, oh hey, the league agrees!

The goal of the week was a little bit of a different story. We really had little to pick from (12) but a couple were nice. Chris Rolfe’s strike in the fifth minute against Toronto was sweet and cool as they come but the goal that got my attention the most was a Primetime kick by Chivas USA’s Ante Razov. Honestly it was vintage Razov.

Some clubs may have dropped a game this week in league play but that might actually not knock them down too much overall here, probably just close the gaps more than anything. While I will try not to use SuperLiga contests and US Open results in these rankings, I can’t help but to have some of them weigh on me a bit this week with the lack of regular season games.

Anyways, let’s get down to business.

1. New England Revolution (33 pts., same) – No need to drop, no one was worthy enough to bump up, plus they played very well in their opener in SuperLiga the other night. I went back and watched most of the game and was very impressed with their showing, usually this isn’t a good international competition club but the Revs came out well.

2. DC United (22 pts., up 1) – Got the bump but really its not by much over Columbus at this point in my mind. Both DC and Columbus lost this week but in different types of games. DC struggled with the Mexican Chivas yet again. They should still be on tap to get out of the group stages, unless Houston remains hot.

3. Columbus Crew (27 pts., down 1) – Not the best game for the Crew, their offense looked totally lost against Real Salt Lake. I don’t know if it was the turf or just a lack of focus on their part but two shots all game doesn’t get it done (ask San Jose). Big game this week though with conference rival Kansas City though, that game should be a test to show if the Crew can bounce back from an ugly loss.

4. Chicago Fire (27 pts., up 3) – Back up the charts with a big win over Toronto at home. Big kudos goes out to John Thorrington in this one to get the win for the Fire. I think they still could have gotten the bump up even with a draw. Oh yeah and Blanco didn’t punch anyone this past weekend, hooray!

5. Toronto FC (21 pts., down 1) – Tough last second loss to the Fire but I saw a lot of hope on the road out of this club. Clearly five games in a 15-day span can take a toll on a club but this club did alright in that time. A home game this weekend against the league’s worst could help cure the problems offensively and defensively for this club.

6. Houston Dynamo (20 pts., up 2) -Again, I tried not to use the SuperLiga result in this but after watching them hammer Atlante 4-0, plus the resigning of Nate Jaqua, and this club could be back on track for real now. I want to see how the next two SuperLiga games go but I got a real sense that this club will contend for another MLS Cup after Saturday’s result.

7. Real Salt Lake (23 pts., up 2) – No truth to the rumor that they want to delay the opening of their new stadium so they can continue to play at Rice-Eccles for the rest of the season (RSL is one of two remaining undefeated clubs at home this season). Defense wins and this club certainly has found a nice defense as of late to lead the way. Just three goals allowed (one being an own goal) in their past eight matches (RSL is 4-1-3 during that stretch). Still I believe most would agree that this club needs better results on the road and better play in general on the road to be taken serious. But for now they are kings of the west.

8. Chivas USA (22 pts., down 3) – Tough to go down this far when you aren’t playing in-league right now. But that’s happening to Chivas I suppose when other clubs around them closed the gap between them and then passed them. Losing Brad Guzan may have put a serious block in their playoff hopes though. They need to wheel and deal to get things on track here I think.

9. LA Galaxy (22 pts., down 3) – We haven’t seen the Galaxy this low in a while but that is what happens when teams catch up to you and a sloppy defense takes it’s toll on the whole club. They should rebound this weekend in New York.

10. Kansas City Wizards (20 pts., up 3) – Suddenly the Wizards are back in the pack in the eastern standings (and overall for that matter). Adding Josh Wolff should definitely help too, their offense needs a spark. A win against the Crew this weekend will do more than wonders for their confidence but I’m not entirely sold on their playoff chances just yet.

11. FC Dallas (18 pts., down 1) – Even with the loss in the US Open Cup, I still think Dallas will be fine thanks to a weekend off for Schellas Hyndman and his bunch. They also benefit from poor play by clubs below them as well.

12. Colorado Rapids (20 pts., down 1) – What do ya know, they have a solid performance one week and follow it up by a big huge dud the next. They may still be in the playoff race but believe me their inconsistent play will not get them far later on down the road.

13. New York Red Bulls (20 pts., down 2) – How long will it take us to figure out this new look bunch that we will see this weekend against the Galaxy? Probably not too long, either they will be a vast improvement over the current bunch that we already know is overrated; or they will be no different and this club will fail to reach above the 10-spot in these rankings for the rest of the year.

14. San Jose Earthquakes (13 pts., same) – Arrivals of Darren Huckerby and Scott Sealy should help the putrid attack, but may not be enough to help San Jose be a real threat. Still, even without the flashy goals and a winning record the Quakes are built for the future right?