Real Salt Lake is the last undefeated team in MLS, but are they any good?

MLS recovered from a fairly uneventful Week 5 Or 6 Depending On Who You Ask, delivering a lot of entertainment in Week I Guess We’re Calling This 7. All 20 teams were in action, producing a very solid 34 goals between them.

Four of those came from the LA Galaxy, who’s starting to looking pretty scary. Even though Nigel De Jong was suspended against the Houston Dynamo, they still looked decent enough defensively. And even though Robbie Keane was out injured, their attack was firing on all cylinders.

They’re the big story in the league right now, but flying a bit under the radar is what Real Salt Lake is doing. Very few picked them to be MLS contenders, but they’re the most consistent team in either conference, and they have a perfect record at home. However, we’re skeptical about whether they can keep this up.

This weekend’s scores

We’re 10 games into the season and no one’s figured out how to beat RSL yet. And they’re not necessarily avoiding defeat with their potent attacking trio, but with defense, at least on the box score. Their six goals against are tied for fourth-best in the league, just one behind the three teams that have all allowed five.

Going into this year, most assumed that RSL would have to score a lot of goals to compete. Their forward line of Joao Plata, Yura Movsisyan and “Burrito” Juan Manuel Martinez is probably the best in the league, but their defense is questionable. Kyle Beckerman, Chris Wingert and Jamison Olave are all 33 or older, while Justen Glad is only 19. Nick Rimando is one of the league’s best goalkeepers, but he’s 36, about to turn 37.

Right now, Michael Caley’s Expected Goals model suggests they’re not actually playing that well. Their great forward line is finishing off a high percentage of chances, but their actual chance creation is average. Their defense isn’t actually playing that well, but getting bailed out by some combination of luck and Rimando being brilliant.

So if you’re thinking RSL are just as good as Dallas, the Galaxy and the Sporks, pump the brakes. They have to get better at creating shots, and much better at preventing them, no matter who good their center forward and goalkeeper are.

Steven Gerrard and Giovani dos Santos didn’t have a full preseason before they got thrust into the Galaxy lineup last season and it showed. The team was disjointed after adding its new stars and Bruce Arena didn’t get his best lineup sorted out in time for the playoffs. But with the benefit of a full camp together, Gerrard and dos Santos look like they’re starting to understand both their roles and their teammates.

It’s possible that Gerrard and Gio stay defensive liabilities when the playoffs come around, but they might create enough goals that it doesn’t even matter.

Take a glance at the standings in the Eastern Conference. There’s minimal separation between first and ninth, and last-placed Red Bulls won the Supporters’ Shield last season. It’s starting to look very possible that the playoff race is going to be really wild.

I complained about the lack of separation and good teams last week, but I’m feeling a bit more optimistic about the East getting fun after Montreal and Columbus both posted multiple goals in their wins. Orlando-Revs was a thoroughly entertaining 2-2 draw. It’s possible that the East is filled with pretty good teams, as opposed to being filled with teams that aren’t very good at all. It has even more of an “anyone can beat anyone” feel than usual, and it’s because every team in the East has multiple great attacking players.

This is not a ranking that has anything to do with how good a team is at soccer. It’s simply about how likely you are to be entertained if you choose to watch their game on MLS Live. Our bottom team, D.C. United, really didn’t look that bad this week. Congrats to MLS on currently having zero unwatchable teams.

1. Dallas (up 1)
2. Orlando (up 1)
3. NYCFC (up 3)
4. RSL (down 3)
5. Galaxy (up 5)
6. Timbers (up 2)
7. Dynamo (unchanged)
8. Crew (up 10)
9. Impact (down 4)
10. Sounders (up 3)
11. Sporks (down 7)
12. Quakes (up 3)
13. Revs (up 3)
14. Union (down 4)
15. Toronto (down 4)
16. Whitecaps (down 2)
17. Fire (up 3)
18. Red Bulls (down 6)
19. Rapids (unchanged)
20. DC (down 3)

1. Chris Wondolowski will break the career MLS goals record.
2. Joao Plata is the MVP favorite and should stay in the conversation all year.
3. New York Red Bulls might be Actually Bad.
4. The Crew will be in the top two in the East at the end of May.
5. D.C. United turned a corner despite a shutout loss and actually look like they can create shots now.
6. Now that he’s on the board, Jordan Morris will score 10-plus goals.

Have a great week, fam.