The Colorado Rapids hold onto a top eight position in the Power Rankings

October 7, 2:30 PMColorado Rapids ExaminerDeron White

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The Rapids took the eighth place spot in the latest Examiner Power Rankings.  The eighth place ranking represents a drop of two place in the poll.  

The Rapids current rank has them among the top eight and still vying for a playoff spot.  

The rank is well earned by a Rapids team that has been holding on for dear life lately.  The team has earned four points from their last four games, the result of four draws.  Not winning but not losing is a very dicey way to accumulate points.  

The Rapids deserve some praise for the tenacity that the team has displayed of late.  The offense has looked anemic without the help of Jamie Smith, Colin Clark, and Jacob Peterson, but the team has got the points anyway, coming from behind in three of the games to earn the draws. 

On the other hand the Rapids can be accused of having ridden a wave of very good fortune lately.  Conor Casey has extended his Rapids single season goal scoring record to 15, but the last three of those goals have come from the penalty spot.  Can the Rapids continue to rely on the referees to keep awarding them?

Now with two games to go the Rapids are still in the playoffs, but several teams are nipping at their heels.  The biggest threat is Toronto F.C.  who have a game in hand and a very friendly schedule.  If the Rapids rely on their luck they'll have to hope that Toronto fails to capitalize or New England goes winless in their next three games.  A win by the Rapids would remove a lot of the worry, but to get it the Rapids will need to find a way to score from the run of play.

My Ballot

1. Columbus Crew - What's left to play for?  The Supporters Shield, and/or just the fun of knocking both D.C. United and the New England Revolution out of the playoffs.
2. Chivas U.S.A. - Yeah, D.C.'s been fading, but the Goats looked creative and spritely in their win at R.F.K.
3. Houston Dynamo - The Crew look to be shoe-ins for the Supporters Shield.  That leaves the Dynamo in the position of having two games to avoid injuries and think over who they'd rather face in the finals: Chivas or Seattle. 
4. Los Angeles Galaxy - Like the Dynamo they might want to start thinking about who they'd rather face: Chivas or Seattle.  Chivas has lots of advantages for them: home field for both legs and season domination. 
5. Chicago Fire - For a team that's supposed to be among the best, the Fire really should have clinched a playoff spot by now.
6. New England Revolution - New England's produced a fantastic late season run to get themselves to this point, but the hard work still lays ahead.  They need a strong finish against Columbus (twice) and Chicago to get a post season berth.
7. Seattle Sounders - The Sounders deserve a  lot of credit for being the team that broke both D.C. United's and the Seattle Sounder's home mojo.
8. Colorado Rapids - The Rapids struggle to gain points has them looking over their shoulders.  They may crawl into the playoffs at 40 points, but a win would do wonders. 
9. Toronto F.C. - The team outside the top eight that has the best chance of making the playoffs.  Will they seize the opportunity?  
10. D.C. United - They need to win out to make the playoffs.  On current form that does not look likely.
11. F.C. Dallas - Dallas, like New England, dug a hole and has done an admirable job of climbing out.  Unfortunately Dallas needs to win three straight to have a hopes of fully resurrecting this season.
12. Real Salt Lake -  Another team that needs to win out to make the post season.  In order to do that they will have to ruin the party for Toronto F.C.
13. Kansas City Wizards - The Wizards can cap their season by ruining D.C.'s.  Reaching the playoffs will require two wins and a lot of luck.
14. San Jose Earthquakes - The Earthquakes are suddenly a tough team to beat. Toronto and Dallas would probably like them to roll over and play dead, but then so did Colorado and D.C.  Party-poopers.
15. New York Red Bulls - What a roller coaster ride it has been for the Red Bulls.  One year ago they charged into the playoffs.  One year later they clinched last place with two games in hand.