Fantasy Soccer Advice

MLS Fantasy Week 3 positional rankings

MLS Fantasy is in full swing, and weā€™re starting to get enough of a sample size to see which players could emerge as good values this season. Week 3 presents a good opportunity for managers to gain some ground on the leaderboard, with multiple matchups worth keying in on for fantasy purposes. Letā€™s jump right into the top options and values at each position this week.

Get more advice on the MLS Fantasy Insider Round 3 preview podcast.

Teams on a BYE: TOR

Goalkeepers

Pedro Gallese pitched a clean sheet in Orlandoā€™s first home game, and heā€™s conceded just one goal across the first two games of the 2021 season. Heā€™s back in the home confines of Exploria Stadium, and facing a Cincinnati attack that was stifled by New York City FC last week is reason enough for the oddsmakers to tab Orlando City with the best shutout odds of Week 3.

Goalkeepers
Goalkeepers
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Pedro Gallese
ORL
vs. CIN
$6.8
2. Joe Willis
NSH
vs. MIA
$5.5
3. Matt Turner
NE
vs. ATL
$6.4
4. Stefan Frei
SEA
vs. LA
$7.0
5. Dayne St. Clair
MIN
vs. ATX
$6.0
Value Goalkeepers
Value Goalkeepers
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Phelipe Megiolaro
DAL
vs. POR
$4.3
2. JT Marcinkowski
SJ
vs. DC
$5.0
3. David Ochoa
RSL
vs. SKC
$4.6

Defenders

Walker Zimmerman followed up a dismal Week 1 effort with a seven-point performance in Week 2. He delivered a strong score despite no goals, assists, or clean sheet points. The ability to rack up defensive bonus points combined with his attacking threat on dead balls keeps his name in the fantasy conversation. Nashville should be eager for a win at home after a pair of thrilling draws to start the season, and up against what's likely to be a depleted Inter Miami attack, Zimmerman is well-positioned to pile up points across multiple avenues.

Defenders
Defenders
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Walker Zimmerman
NSH
vs. MIA
$6.7
2. Ryan Hollingshead
DAL
vs. POR
$6.4
3. Oswaldo Alanis
SJ
vs. DC
$5.8
4. Daniel Lovitz
NSH
vs. MIA
$6.7
5. Cristian Gutierrez
VAN
vs. COL
$5.5
6. Brad Smith
SEA
vs. LA
$5.5
7. Kai Wagner
PHI
vs. NYC
$6.5
8. Ruan
ORL
vs. CIN
$5.7
9. Anton Tinnerholm
NYC
at PHI
$6.6
10. Alex Roldan
SEA
vs. LA
$6.0
Value Defenders
Value Defenders
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Brandon Bye
NE
vs. ATL
$4.9
2. Marco Farfan
LAFC
at HOU
$4.8
3. John Nelson
DAL
vs. POR
$5.0

Midfielders

Nani rewarded his fantasy owners with a nifty backheel goal and 10 points in Week 2, and he pops off as a top option in Week 3. Facing a FC Cincinnati defense that ranks dead-last in both shots conceded (53) and goals conceded (7), all of Orlando Cityā€™s attackers are in play. With Nani the presumed penalty kick taker, he gets an added bump with a slightly higher ceiling than his strike partners.

Midfielders
Midfielders
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Nani
ORL
vs. CIN
$9.2
2. Carles Gil
NE
vs. ATL
$10.1
3. Emanuel Reynoso
MIN
vs. ATX
$9.3
4. Lucas Zelarayan
CLB
at MTL
$8.9
5. Chris Mueller
ORL
vs. CIN
$7.5
6. Cristian Espinoza
SJ
vs. DC
$8.4
7. Robin Lod
MIN
vs. ATX
$8.7
8. Randall Leal
NSH
vs. MIA
$7.5
9. Jack Price
COL
at VAN
$8.6
10. Jamiro Monteiro
PHI
vs. NYC
$9.4
11. Mauricio Pereyra
ORL
vs. CIN
$8.0
12. Eduard Atuesta
LAFC
at HOU
$10.2
13. Lewis Morgan
MIA
at NSH
$9.0
14. Hany Mukhtar
NSH
vs. MIA
$8.9
15. Joao Paulo
SEA
vs. LA
$9.0
16. Memo Rodriguez
HOU
vs. LAFC
$7.4
17. Ezequiel Barco
ATL
at NE
$8.2
18. Cristian Roldan
SEA
vs. LA
$8.4
19. Cristian Dajome
VAN
vs. COL
$7.2
20. Jesus Medina
NYC
at PHI
$7.8
Value Midfielders
Value Midfielders
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Tyler Pasher
HOU
vs. LAFC
$4.7
2. Anthony Fontana
PHI
vs. NYC
$5.9
3. Luka Stojanovic
CHI
at RBNY
$5.5

Forwards

Raul Ruidiaz came back down to earth with just three points in Week 2 after delivering two goals and 11 points on opening weekend. His LA Galaxy counterpart Javier ā€œChicharitoā€ Hernandez canā€™t stop scoring goals and he leads all players with 30 total points through the first two rounds of MLS Fantasy. Both hit men are top options in a game that could feature goals, just be sure to confirm theyā€™re in the starting lineups before locking them in.

Forwards
Forwards
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Raul Ruidiaz
SEA
vs. LA
$10.4
2. Javier Hernandez
LA
at SEA
$9.0
3. Lucas Cavallini
VAN
vs. COL
$9.3
4. Alan Pulido
SKC
at RSL
$9.0
5. Kacper Przybylko
PHI
vs. NYC
$8.2
6. Gustavo Bou
NE
vs. ATL
$9.6
7. Josef Martinez
ATL
at NE
$9.0
8. Robert Beric
CHI
at RBNY
$10.2
9. Romell Quioto
MTL
vs. CLB
$7.1
10. Jhonder Cadiz
NSH
vs. MIA
$8.4
Value Forwards
Value Forwards
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Cade Cowell
SJ
vs. DC
$4.9
2. Rubio Rubin
RSL
vs. SKC
$6.5
3. Mason Toye
MTL
vs. CLB
$5.8
Captain
Captain
Player
Team
Opponent
Price
1. Nani
ORL
vs. CIN
$9.2
2. Raul Ruidiaz
SEA
vs. LA
$10.4
3. Carles Gil
NE
vs. ATL
$10.1