A full slate of games this week resulted in relatively few surprising scores and thus a fairly stable week in the rankings. Note that the 3 games played last week in what was primarily a Jägermeister Cup week are included in the Forge Factor scores but are not being reviewed.
| Rank | Team | Previous | Change | Record | Forge Factor | Note | Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charleston Battery | 1 | 0 | 8-2-1 | 25.374 | A close 1-1 draw with Loudoun ends the win streak at 7. The Battery drop to 2nd in the East on tiebreakers. | @ Hartford |
| 2 | Phoenix Rising | 3 | +1 | 5-3-4 | 22.129 | Phoenix pretty much had it all go right in the 3-1 win over Orange County. 4 straight wins and 2nd in the West. | @ Tulsa |
| 3 | North Carolina FC | 5 | +2 | 6-3-2 | 18.777 | North Carolina needed 94 minutes and a man advantage to get the 1-0 win in Hartford but now share the best win streak with Phoenix. | @ Rhode Island |
| 4 | New Mexico United | 4 | 0 | 7-3-1 | 18.491 | The 1-1 home draw with the Switchbacks was as closely played as possible. There’s not a great deal of space between 1st and 10th in the West. | @ Lexington |
| 5 | FC Tulsa | 10 | +5 | 6-3-2 | 18.151 | Tulsa scored in the 10th minute to beat Sacramento 1-0 in a close one. 2nd in the West but they lose Owen Damm late for next week’s big game. | v. Phoenix |
| 6 | El Paso Locomotive | 2 | -4 | 5-2-5 | 16.802 | The Locomotive played a tedious 0-0 draw in Oakland, diverting from their normal high-scoring games. The better team, if barely. | v. Orange County |
| 7 | The Miami FC | 9 | +2 | 4-5-1 | 15.740 | With the 1-0 win in Rhode Island Miami have lost on the road just once this season (in the Open Cup). 3-1-1 in the last five. | @ Tampa Bay |
| 8 | Louisville City | 8 | 0 | 6-0-4 | 15.281 | Lou City extended its unbeaten start to 11 games with a relatively easy 2-1 win over the Rowdies, Back top of the East and looking invincible. | v. Rhode Island, v. Birmingham |
| 9 | Sacramento Republic | 6 | -3 | 3-3-4 | 14.889 | SacRep continued an erratic season, losing a tight game 0-1 to Tulsa. They drop to 8th in the West. | v. San Antonio |
| 10 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds | 11 | +1 | 4-5-2 | 14.538 | No FMLA for new dad Robbie Mertz who got an assist and a goal in the 2-0 win over Detroit. 1 goal allowed in the last 4 games. | @ Indy |
| 11 | Loudoun United | 13 | +2 | 7-3-1 | 11.799 | Loudoun had to come from behind for the 1-1 draw with Charleston. The game was as close as the score suggests. | v. Detroit |
| 12 | Rhode Island FC | 7 | -5 | 3-5-3 | 11.321 | A big game from Miami keeper Bill Hamid keeps Rhode Island winless at Centreville Bank Stadium. They lose 0-1. | @ Louisville, v. North Carolina |
| 13 | Hartford Athletic | 12 | -1 | 1-6-3 | 9.207 | Hartford almost survived being down a man after 68 minutes but lost 0-1 to North Carolina deep in stoppage time. Moral victories don’t count. | v. Charleston |
| 14 | Birmingham Legion | 14 | 0 | 2-5-4 | 8.870 | Birmingham fell behind early again and despite dominating the rest of the game couldn’t find a breakthrough. They lose 0-1 to Indy. | @ Louisville |
| 15 | Indy Eleven | 18 | +3 | 2-3-5 | 8.216 | The Eleven rode an early long-range Cam Lindley goal and survived some very near misses to get a 1-0 win in Birmingham. | v. Pittsburgh |
| 16 | San Antonio | 22 | +6 | 6-4-2 | 7.826 | San Antonio romped to a 3-0 win over Las Vegas. Not quite back to their early season form but very much in the hunt. | @ Sacramento |
| 17 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks | 19 | +2 | 2-4-6 | 7.739 | The tying score may have been an own goal but Colorado Springs thoroughly deserved the 1-1 draw in New Mexico. | v. Oakland |
| 18 | Orange County | 15 | -3 | 4-6-1 | 6.523 | The OC lost 1-3 in Phoenix and were not impressive in the process. They don’t drop in the standings but fall further behind the top 6. | @ El Paso |
| 19 | Monterey Bay FC | 20 | +1 | 5-4-4 | 6.023 | Monterey Bay got the vital come-from-behind 2-1 win over Lexington. They are 6th but just 3 points out of 1st in the West. | @ Las Vegas |
| 20 | Oakland Roots | 16 | -4 | 3-7-2 | 5.993 | Benny Feilhaber’s head coaching debut was a 0-0 draw with El Paso. The Roots were not exactly inspiring in attack, but it’s a start. | @ Colorado Springs |
| 21 | Detroit City | 17 | -4 | 4-3-5 | 3.064 | It took 79 minutes before Detroit even got a poor long-range shot off, going down 0-2 in Pittsburgh. 0-2-3 and the wheels are off in Detroit. | @ Loudoun |
| 22 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 21 | -1 | 1-7-2 | 2.348 | The Rowdies got a goal from Woobens Pacius in the 1-2 loss in Louisville but the scoreline is flattering. Worst record and GD in the league. | v. Miami |
| 23 | Lexington SC | 24 | +1 | 1-6-5 | 0.085 | Lexington scored early but yet again could not hold the lead, going down 1-2 in Monterey Bay. The rough Championship initiation continues. | v. New Mexico |
| 24 | Las Vegas Lights | 23 | -1 | 3-6-3 | -2.296 | The Lights limped to a 4th straight loss, 0-3 in San Antonio. By Tuesday head coach Antonio Nocerino was out of a job. | v. Monterey Bay |
