June 20, 2024
By Daniel Cohen
There’s loads of goal-scoring talent on this week’s watchlist, with many of these guys looking to build off big Week 8 games. Look for these seven to stuff the stat sheet in crucial mid-season matchups.
Will Brandt, Minnesota Wind Chill (Pictured)
Minnesota’s offense feels like a different beast whenever Will Brandt is on the field. Despite just two starts, Brandt is already top five on the team in completions (84), assists (8), and throwing yards (743). His ability to keep the offense moving with reliable break throws in addition to punctuating scores in the red zone gives him the perfect skill set to lead the Wind Chill attack, and he’s slotted in seamlessly as the backfield complement to Josh Klane. While he’s been pretty confined to the handler set so far, Brandt still has the capability to turn into a downfield hybrid on any given point, and one has to wonder if we see that on display this weekend given the expected absences of cutters Matt Rehder and Quinn Snider. The Wind Chill begin the second half of their season against a Madison team currently sitting second in the league in opponent O-line conversion rate, so Brandt and the Wind Chill offense will have their work cut out for them in this week’s Game of the Week.
Travis Dunn, San Diego Growlers
At 3-4, the San Diego Growlers still have a shot at the playoffs in a crowded West Division, and if they’re going to get there, it’ll be on the back of their perennial MVP candidate Travis Dunn. Per usual, the ninth-year veteran has consistently been putting up numbers this season as the team’s top offensive playmaker, and he currently ranks second in the league in total scores with 48 in seven games. Week in and week out, Travis gets in Dunn with both his legs and his throws, as he’s currently the only player in the league with over 2,000 receiving yards and double-digit huck completions (12). The Growlers will be without KJ Koo this week, so expect a big workload for Dunn this week as the team heads to Colorado and Oakland for a midseason double header.
Quinn Finer, Colorado Summit
I’ve been waiting all year to write his name in this column: Quinn Finer—assuming he’s not a late scratch—is set to finally make his 2024 debut against San Diego tomorrow night. This game is a must-win for Colorado, as is every game for them going forward if they want to have a chance at making the playoffs, so it’ll be really nice to have another playmaker like Finer in the lineup for this crucial do-or-die stretch. In his first two seasons with Colorado, Finer amassed over 150 scores (goals plus assists) in 27 games, earning back-to-back Second Team All-UFA honors in 2022 and 2023. His versatility unlocks a lot for this offense as both a thrower and field-stretching receiver, and he should slot right back in as a primary O-line weapon in his first game back.
Walker Frankenberg, Oakland Spiders
Last year’s Rookie of the Year runner-up, Walker Frankenberg is having another strong season with the Oakland Spiders. Through their first six games, Frankenberg leads the team in both total scores and total yards as a top option on the Spiders O-line, and he’s been on a recent tear over his last two games, with nine assists, five goals, two blocks and nearly 1,300 yards of offense against Salt Lake and Colorado. With quick give-and-go ability in the red zone and a great feel for spacing downfield, Frankenberg has been an ideal cog for the Spiders O-line and has the legs to make a consistent impact for the full 48 minutes each game. He’s shown a tendency to show up big for big games, and this week’s matchup with San Diego fits the bill; it’s the first of three remaining meetings with the Growlers, a series which could very well determine the third seed in the West.
Jeremy Langdon, Atlanta Hustle
Jeremy Langdon went off against Houston last week in Atlanta’s record-setting win, totaling eight goals and over 400 receiving yards in his most productive game in a Hustle jersey. Langdon now has at least three goals in every game this season, and he ranks third in the league in goals per game (4.2). He’s really come into his role as an every-week O-line starter; this season he’s showcased both the downfield explosiveness to take the top off defenses, as well as reliability in the intermediate space to keep the offense moving. He’s also just not making many mistakes—he has just one throwaway in five games—and he leads the team in individual offensive efficiency; Atlanta has scored on 72.1 percent of their possessions when Langdon’s been on the field. The two games he missed this year were both Carolina games, so this is the first we’ll be seeing him against Atlanta’s toughest South Division rival.
Terrence Mitchell, Carolina Flyers
After playing more D-points than O-points for the first time in his career last season, Terrence Mitchell has shifted back to offense and is looking as good as ever in his downfield cutting role. Through six games, Mitchell is on pace to set career highs in both receiving yards (1,499 leads team) and total yards (1,835; averaging over 300 per game). His two best games of the season so far have both come against Atlanta, including a seven-score game in their most recent meeting, and he’ll get another chance to break free from the Hustle defense this Saturday. The entire Flyers offense has been clicking, but they’re also about to take on the toughest roster they’ve faced; if Mitchell is able to consistently win his one-on-one matchups, Carolina will be in great shape to continue their streak of strong offensive performances to start the year.
Pieran Robert, Madison Radicals
Madison Radicals rookie Pieran Robert has been a D-line star through his first six career games, and he’s coming off his best game of the season in which he scored seven goals against Colorado. He’s been Dylan DeClerck-esque when it comes to running off turnovers, as he’s become the primary scoring option for the Radicals D-line due to his instincts and burst in transition. You can tell he’s earning more and more trust as the season’s gone on; Robert has played 20-plus points in each of his last two games after averaging just 14.5 points per game through his first four. While Madison currently ranks fifth in the league in D-line conversion rate (60.3 percent), the Wind Chill have been stingy against the counterattack this year, allowing just 38 percent of opportunities to convert (second best). If Robert continues on his current trajectory and finds room to break free against the Wind Chill O-line, the Radicals will have a great shot at pulling off the upset.
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