I’m officially back from vacation! Apologies for missing last week, I was in northern Wisconsin for a few days – and on Pickerel Lake, I think I saw a North American River Otter (which is my second favorite animal after the Giant Otter). Some may say it was a muskrat, but I’m going to be positive.
Then I was back in Chicago in time to attend the Cubs-Pirates baseball game, where they were giving out a combo Dansby/Mallory Swanson bobblehead, but I think they were gone about 90 minutes before I showed up. On the bright side, I did get to see a bunch of Thunderbirds flying overhead during the game for the Air & Water Show.
Anyway, let’s dive into the last couple of weeks of FNWSL action! Remember, the CONCACAF W Champions Cup starts Tuesday for the 2025-2026 competition. That means Gotham, Orlando, and Washington are going to have some three-game weeks coming up and some players may see reduced minutes. Also, league play in Round 17 starts on Thursday with Angel City hosting Orlando, so we have a early deadline of Thursday evening at 10:30e/9:30c/8:30m/7:30p.
What’s going on in Orlando?
To be fair, I don’t think we need to put too much stock into the KC-Orlando game last weekend, which was delayed by more than three hours due to heat and was played in less-than-ideal conditions. The total xG in the match was under 1 according to FBRef, and the heat was having a visibly negative effect on the players.
However, we can’t fully avoid the fact that the Pride have taken a big step back in fantasy production this year. Almost 30% of Orlando’s goals this season were scored in the opening night domination of the Stars, and the Pride haven’t logged a multi-goal game since May 23. To make matters worse, Barbra Banda left the game with an injury. Fortunately, early reports suggest the injury is not serious and she may be able to return this week. However, either way, it may be time to replace Banda (or other members of the Pride) on your FNWSL team.
If you are looking for a Banda alternative, the good news is that, because she’s at the premium price of $500k, there are lots of great players you can bring in – and that’s assuming you already have Temwa Chawinga on your team. For the high-floor option, I like Taylor Flint. Flint is one of the rare FNWSL players who consistently racks up big points regardless of the matchup or even the final outcome of the game. Flint also takes the majority of PKs for Louisville, adding to her weekly upside. In fact, I brought her in for Round 16 and she’ll likely be starting on my team for the rest of the year.
However, as we get later in the season and/or if you’re more adventurous than I am, you may be looking for a higher-ceiling and/or differential play. The highest-ceiling non-Chawinga FW is probably Esther (who’s also $100k less expensive than Banda). She returned to the scoresheet against Houston this week and is currently leading the Golden Boot race. She’s been very streaky this year, with two separate runs of 4+ consecutive games with a goal, but also two separate runs of 3+ consecutive games without a goal. Trinity Rodman’s minutes have been steadily increasing over the past three weeks, and it’s possible we see her in the starting XI this week or next. I would guess that her TSB% will also start steadily increasing, but she should be an ideal differential option for at least the next two or three rounds.
Do week-to-week matchups really matter for fantasy right now?
After blanking Angel City, Utah has conceded only twice in the previous three matches – after five consecutive matches of conceding at least three times before the departure of Ally Sentnor. It looks like the Royals have moved on successfully to their next chapter and found some consistency on the defensive end. The same could be said for Chicago, as the Stars are now on a streak of five draws in six matches following an epic comeback on Monday night in Seattle. Alyssa Naeher has returned from injury and has both solidified the Chicago defense and added a new goalscoring threat. (As a slight aside, this makes three consecutive matches with a goal for Jess Fishlock. Considering her minutes, she’s a little risky, but only costs $200k.)
The third-lowest team in the table, Houston, now hasn’t lost in three matches and is showing improvement. Their final goals are coming late – in the final minutes of the match and into stoppage time. But they’re growing into their games and they aren’t giving up.
The point is, it looks like we are back to the status quo of clear and obvious parity in the NWSL. For now, I’m not going to worry too much about matchups when selecting my team each week. I’ll just start the XI that I feel the best about.
What is going on with set pieces?
We haven’t talked about set pieces in a while (Round 2 maybe?), so let’s do that.
The top four in total corner kicks taken through 16 rounds are Kenza Dali, Sarah Schupansky, Olivia Moultrie, and Taylor Huff. For what it’s worth, all of them are currently on my team, though I don’t start Schupansky every week. Louisville DF Courtney Peterson ($150k) is fifth, and, as she’s on significantly fewer FNWSL teams than any of the aforementioned quartet, she’s a good low-cost differential play.
Not too much new to report on free kicks: Sam Staab, Emily Sonnett, and Abby Dahlkemper lead the way among outfield players as usual.
Bay MF Caroline Conti (only $75k) converted her third PK of the season last week. Fellow $75k MF Riley Jackson converted her first in her second attempt of the season for NC the previous week. Sam Coffey converted one in the Cascadia Rivalry and appears to have taken over PK duties for the Thorns as rookie DF Jayden Perry’s minutes have been cut significantly.
What are your thoughts on Round 17? Comment or Bluesky @MansersAnswers!