July 24, 2025
By Daniel Cohen
It’s officially playoff season. Every team playing this weekend will need to win two elimination games to make it to Championship Weekend—expect some monster individual performances when the stakes are at their highest.
Tobias Brooks, Colorado Summit
The clear focal point of Colorado’s offense every time he’s taken the field, Tobias Brooks will look to lead the Summit to another win over Oakland in their first round playoff meeting this Saturday. Brooks had one of the more memorable new team debuts earlier this summer against Oakland, when he lit up the Spiders for over 900 total yards and eight scores in Colorado’s 24-21 victory. While he’s played just five games this year, Brooks leads the team in throwing yards and averages 52 completions per game; no other O-line player on the team averages more than 30. This Spiders defense isn’t going to roll over—they rank fifth this year in opponent O-line conversion rate—and it’ll be worth watching what adjustments they make to try and stop Colorado’s top playmaker.
Travis Dunn, San Diego Growlers
Like clockwork, Travis Dunn finished with his seventh straight 40-assist regular season in 2025. Dunn is as consistent as they come when he’s on the field, and while he’s missed the last two games, he’s back in the lineup for San Diego’s first round playoff game against Austin. The franchise leader in nearly every offensive stat, Dunn will play his seventh career playoff game on Saturday, and he’s currently averaging over six scores and nearly 30 completions per game throughout his career in the postseason. With over 500 yards and four assists in the Growlers’ first meeting with Austin, expect Dunn to be leaned on once again as one of the team’s top scorers, combining his downfield cutting prowess with big continuation throws as San Diego looks to keep pace with an explosive Sol offense.
Walker Frankenberg, Oakland Spiders
Last time Oakland played Colorado, Walker Frankenberg recorded over 350 throwing and 350 receiving yards with six scores. Firmly in the MVP conversation heading into the playoffs, Frankenberg has done everything for this Oakland offense—pick a label, and he fits it. Give-and-go specialist. Primary facilitator. Chunk gainer. Red zone weapon. Downfield striker. He finished just shy of a 40/40 (assists and goals) season—he surely would have gotten there if he hadn’t missed two regular season games—and he ranks third in the UFA in yards per game (591) and scores per game (7.7). He leads the team in individual offensive efficiency—Oakland scores on 64.7 percent of possessions when Frankenberg is on the field, up from their team O-line conversion rate of 59.9 percent—and he’s coming off his best two-game stretch of the season after tormenting Salt Lake and San Diego back in Week 10. He’ll look to stay hot as Oakland goes for their first postseason win since 2015.
Kyle Henke, Austin Sol
Kyle Henke has been a major playoff performer in the past, and he’ll have a chance to lead Austin to their second South Division Championship Game appearance in three seasons if the Sol can hold strong at home this Saturday. Last year in their round one playoff game against Carolina, Henke racked up 755 total yards and six scores on 37 touches. In the 2023 South Division Championship Game at Atlanta, Henke finished with over 500 yards, seven scores, and two blocks, including a season-saving layout block in double overtime. He can put the team on his back in any given game, and the Growlers’ middle-of-the-pack defense is a beatable matchup; he led the team with 500 total yards in their win over San Diego earlier this year and scored the go-ahead goal late in the fourth quarter. Henke has the skill, leadership, and clutch gene necessary to will Austin to the next round, and if he can limit turnovers as the O-line’s primary quarterback, they’ll be in a great spot to push for another Championship Weekend appearance.
Josh Klane, Minnesota Wind Chill
While he’s not often in the spotlight given Minnesota’s offensive depth, there’s still no one quite like Josh Klane on the Wind Chill O-line. You could feel the gravity he brought to the field last Friday in Salt Lake and all throughout Championship Weekend last year; he’s the most consistent deep thrower on the team (particularly in windy conditions) and one of the singular momentum-drivers the offense can lean on. Klane’s best game of the season this year came at home against Madison in Week 12 when he tossed four assists, scored two goals, and even recorded a pair of blocks in Minnesota’s 16-13 win. He’s thrown at least three assists in each of his last three games against Madison, and he led the team in throwing yards in last year’s Central Division Championship Game, which included going a perfect three-for-three on hucks. It still feels like Minnesota is searching for their final form offensively, and if it’s going to involve a deep attack, Klane will be the one leading the charge.
Rowan McDonnell, DC Breeze
Leading the DC Breeze in total scores and plus/minus for the first time since 2022, Rowan McDonnell has turned back the clock this year. The 36-year-old is looking as sharp as ever in his ninth pro season, routinely getting open in the midfield space, moving the disc with decisiveness, and re-establishing himself as a top-tier red zone weapon. While throwaways have plagued some otherwise strong performances in recent weeks—he has two or more throwaways in each of his last six games—he’s proven to be one of the O-line’s more aggressive scorers and it feels like the trade-off works out more often than not. His highest scoring game of the season came against New York in their first meeting, when he tossed eight assists and scored a goal, and he’s coming off his second-highest scoring game of the year after finding the end zone seven times against Philly. DC hasn’t defeated New York in a playoff game since 2016, and all eyes will be on their franchise leader as they look to keep New York out of the East Division Championship Game for the second straight season.
John Randolph, New York Empire
With a whopping 31 scores in his last four games—more than he had in any prior season with New York since joining the team in 2022—it’s safe to say John Randolph has formally launched his MVP campaign. The switch to full-time O-line this year has given this offense a fresh identity, driven by Randolph’s chemistry with Jack Williams and Solomon Rueshemeyer-Bailey in the handler set. His explosiveness as both a thrower and receiver when releasing from the backfield has brought a new dimension to the offense, which had been trending the wrong direction over the last year-plus following the departures of MVPs Jeff Babbitt and Ryan Osgar. Randolph played a perfect game in New York’s last meeting with DC, as he totaled nine scores and 578 total yards of offense without a turnover in the 19-18 win. Now riding a four-game win streak into the playoffs, another dominant JR performance this week could have New York looking like the most dangerous team heading into the divisional championship round in a couple weeks.
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