May 13, 2026
By Adam Ruffner
The Breeze notching back-to-back wins in their rivalry with the Empire has tilted the cosmic frisbee scales back slightly towards equilibrium after years of New York getting the better of DC at the buzzer, as does San Diego's retribution over Atlanta in Week 3. But even with a few different games decided at the buzzer, the real headline that emerged from last weekend, as far as these rankings go, is the assertion of Oakland as a true title contender in 2026.
THE BACK 12
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After back-to-back-to-back narrow(ish) road losses to start their schedule, Montreal finally ended their three-game skid with a 32-goal eruption in Pittsburgh. Malik Auger-Semmar and Christophe Tremblay-Joncas are both playing like top 10 offensive players in the league, with CTJ completing three hucks per game at an 86 percent clip; Le Camion is now a white-hot 38-of-46 (82.6 percent!) from deep since the start of the 2025 season. The Royal are already clinging to their playoff hopes and it’s barely mid-May. But with six home games over their final eight—and their first stateside road win since 2022—the Royal could still yet rally.
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After enduring talk all offseason about the supposedly upgraded AlleyCats, Madison went out in their first game of the season and collected an impressive road dub with a ferocious fourth quarter finish. And though their performances weren’t overwhelming in terms of volume, the presences of re-added veterans Victor Luo and Ian McCosky injected some much needed throwing depth to both lines. Anthony Gutowsky remains a scalpel inside the red zone, and his effectiveness when paired with Eric Sjostrom is just starting to blossom. But for all the positives, it was the third straight game with 20 or more turnovers for the Radicals, and fifth straight without converting at least 50 percent of their offensive possessions dating back to last June.
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Toronto is officially in the “wild card” seat after their home opener win against Montreal. The Rush defense has back-to-back games with double digit takeaways for the first time since 2024, and the offense is playing like a top 10 unit, with a finer focus on short field scenarios; through their first three games of 2026, the Rush have a red zone success rate nine percentage points higher than in 2025. Max Pettenuzzo gives defenses another playmaking threat to worry about alongside trackstar Martin Gallant, who is averaging five scores and nearly 400 yards per start. Toronto only has two more games combined against Boston and New York remaining on their schedule, and they’ve always played well against DC at home, where they host the Breeze on May 29.
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The William Wettengel offensive revolution is coming after his seven-assist introduction to the new season. But with 22 total turnovers as a team, including five different AlleyCats players with multiple throwaways, this new-look Indianapolis squad ran into the same problems that kept them out of the playoffs the past two seasons. On the one hand: The ‘Cats already matched last season’s single-game high with 10 completed hucks, which is especially impressive given Madison’s perennial excellence in defending the deep game. On the other: Indy entered the fourth quarter with a two-goal lead, and came out with a loss because of questionable decision making down the stretch.
22.Vegas Bighorns (-)
Record: 0-2
Last result: 30-12 (L) vs Atlanta
Next game: May 15 at Houston
21. Oregon Steel (-)
Record: 0-4
Last result: 24-13 (L) vs Oakland
Next game: May 16 vs Seattle
20. Pittsburgh Thunderbirds (-)
Record: 0-1
Last result: 32-24 (L) vs Montreal
Next game: May 15 vs Madison
19. Houston Havoc (-)
Record: 0-3
Last result: 28-15 (L) at Austin
Next game: May 15 vs Vegas
18. Philadelphia Phoenix (-)
Record: 0-2
Last result: 31-14 (L) at Carolina
Next game: May 24 at Boston
17. Colorado Apex (-)
Record: 1-2
Last result: 26-16 (L) vs Salt Lake
Next game: May 15 at DC (Friday Night Frisbee)
16. Montreal Royal (-)
Record: 1-3
Last result: 32-24 (W) at Pittsburgh
Next game: May 16 vs Boston
15. Chicago Union (-1)
Record: 0-1
Last result: 22-12 (L) at Minnesota
Next game: May 16 vs Minnesota
14. Seattle Cascades (-2)
Record: 1-1
Last result: 26-16 (L) vs Oakland
Next game: May 16 at Oregon
13. Indianapolis AlleyCats (-3)
Record: 0-1
Last result: 19-18 (L) vs Madison
Next game: May 15 vs Minnesota
12. Toronto Rush (+3)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 18-17 (W) vs Montreal
Next game: May 23 at Montreal
11. Madison Radicals (+2)
Record: 1-0
Last result: 19-18 (W) at Indianapolis
Next game: May 15 at Pittsburgh
THE TOP 10
With the Central Division softening a bit, and both the East and South in total flux beyond the reigning champs in Boston, the new superpower out West in Oakland look like the early challengers for the throne. The Spiders have demolished every opponent by a minimum of 10 goals on the way to their 4-0 start, and they look like the fastest team in the league by a margin. Minnesota faces a road doubleheader test ahead this weekend at Indy and Chicago, and could either tighten up the top three or show that it’s a two-team race in the early weeks of the season.
10. Salt Lake Shred (+1)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 26-16 (W) at Colorado
Next game: May 30 vs Oregon
Salt Lake’s offense kicked back into high gear at altitude against the Apex, and the entire team showed grittiness in collecting 18 total blocks, which included six players with two or more on the game. The Shred built their franchise on blocks, and led the league in takeaways during their inaugural campaign in 2022. But season over season, as departure after departure added up, the once formidable Shred layout machine slipped to 12th in blocks per game in 2025. Through three games so far this season, Salt Lake has climbed back into the top four in takeaways. Jordan Kerr is on the verge of cracking into the league’s top 20 all-time in assists, and is just 26 shy of 300 for his career.
9. Atlanta Hustle (-2)
Record: 2-2
Last result: 16-15 (L) at San Diego
Next game: May 16 vs Carolina
Two one-goal road losses to playoff teams isn’t the end of the world for Atlanta, but it does make their incoming four-game series against Carolina even more riveting. The Hustle are third in the league in fewest turnovers per game (11.8) after their first four games of 2026, and they’re remarkably consistent in hitting that low average as they have 13 or fewer turnovers in nine of their last 10 games dating back to last season. But for the first time since last May, the Hustle offense failed to convert at least 50 percent of their possessions against San Diego, and it’s no coincidence that their 15 goal total is the lowest for Atlanta since that same date. And with the Hustle generating just five total break opportunities against the Growlers offense, there was no room for error, even for a team as possession focused as Atlanta.
8. Austin Sol (-2)
Record: 3-0
Last result: 28-15 (W) vs Houston
Next game: May 16 vs Vegas
Following last weekend’s big win over the Havoc, the Sol should make it through their Texas-based May schedule with a clean 4-0 sweep before hosting the Cascades in an uber-intriguing interdivisional matchup on May 31. Austin is a star-led squad, and Kyle Henke is having an MVP-level season. According to advanced statistics, the elder Henke is contributing a league-leading 7.6 goals per game for Austin, over a goal better than the second highest contributing player, and nearly two goals more per game than the sixth best player this season. Austin has avoided the turnover variance that derailed their hot start last season, and the Sol defense has 30 total blocks over their last two outings.
7. San Diego Growlers (+1)
Record: 1-1
Last result: 16-15 (W) vs Atlanta
Next game: May 17 at Oakland
The Growlers offense is playing a fast-paced, selfless style that makes them balanced yet explosive, and the defense is converting break chances at a top-seven rate, putting San Diego back on the inside track to return to the divisional title game. Khalif El-Salaam and Travis Dunn are still the home run hitters in the lineup, but the multi-headed production of Marcel Osborne, Matt Miller, and Daniel Brunker has formed the engine for one of the best attacks in the league. The trio has combined for almost 12 scores and 1,000 yards of offense per game, and their foot-on-the-gas mentality is tough to keep up with when they’re playing in rhythm. This Sunday’s matinee matchup with Oakland, though technically interdivisional, will be a great test between two West Coast contenders.
6. New York Empire (-4)
Record: 1-1
Last result: 26-25 (L, OT) vs DC
Next game: May 16 vs Colorado
The Alex Atkins experiment could not be going better in New York with 15 scores and nearly 1,400 total yards over his first two starts. And yet at 1-1 after Sunday’s drama, the Empire feel exposed for the first time since they began their superstar signing spree last December. This 2026 team was supposed to be a return to the glory days, and instead they are faced with their first home loss against DC since 2017. It’s easy to focus on the final play and the offense as the culprit for the first loss of the season, but the real issue was the same one was 2025: New York cannot buy a block. Week 3 was the third time in their last four games that the Empire finished with seven or fewer blocks, and the team did not produce a takeaway beyond the 11:10 mark of the fourth quarter against DC.
5. DC Breeze (+4)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 26-25 (W, OT) at New York
Next game: May 15 vs Colorado (Friday Night Frisbee)
This Breeze offense loves to stay mobile, agile, hostile, and had five different players—Christian Boxley, Miles Grovic, AJ Merriman, Sean Mott, and second in the league in total yardage currently Jacques Nissen—finish with more than 250 receiving yards in their thriller in New York. All five members of that quintet are averaging better than four scores and 400 total yards per game; only the Sol can come close to DC’s fab five with three starters averaging totals at those same levels. If the Breeze take care of business with the Apex coming to town in Week 4 and extend their winning streak, the Week 5 (May 23) rematch between DC and New York will have the stakes of a playoff game.
4. Carolina Flyers (+1)
Record: 3-0
Last result: 31-14 (W) vs Philadelphia
Next game: May 16 at Atlanta
Carolina posted their second single-digit turnover performance in three games, with Allan Laviolette and Jacob Fairfax looking as peak as at any point during their legendary careers. Fairfax is on pace for his fourth 3,000-yard receiving season in his last five, and Laviolette continued his multi-huck completion streak to 12 games; Laviolette is just five huck completions shy of 100 for his career, which would put him in an illustrious club that has just three current members. Grayson Sanner also continues to improve in his sixth professional season, and is a perfect churner/continuation thrower to play off of Fairfax in open space.
3. Minnesota Wind Chill (-)
Record: 1-0
Last result: 22-12 (W) vs Chicago
Next game: May 15 at Indianapolis
2024 All Defense selection and pulling specialist Cameron Lacy split duties with the now-departed James Pollard in 2025, but is now back in place as a primary option this year. The Week 2 results against Chicago were immediate, as the Wind Chill defense won the field position battle on nearly every possession, with their 9-0 first quarter run often facilitated by back-line, coffin-corner Lacy pulls. The fourth year defender turned 23 at the end of April, so he still has a significant development curve ahead of him, with some very legitimate playmaking potential starting to emerge. As if Minnesota needed another option in transition.
2. Oakland Spiders (+2)
Record: 4-0
Last result: 24-13 (W) at Oregon
Next game: May 17 vs San Diego
With all due respect to the reigning champs, right now the Spiders are playing the best frisbee in the UFA. The offense has seemingly infinite avenues for attack, and their team speed turns many drives into a downhill romp over the opposition. Though his production pace is slightly lower than last year’s 84-score season, Walker Frankenberg is a top five downfield option in the association currently and he knows it, footracing defenders and talking mad after scores. Daniel Ritthaler is leading the team in goals and touches in his seamless transition to offensive striker, and Jason Vallee could be in the conversation for MVP with his command of possessions. Every score feels like a sideline eruption, and they currently have more takeaways (56) than turnovers (52), which is basically unheard of over a four-game stretch.
1. Boston Glory (-)
Record: 2-0
Last result: 22-15 (W) vs Montreal
Next game: May 16 at Montreal
At 32 years old and soldiering into his 10th year in the league, Jeff Babbitt nearly has more years on him than regular season turnovers. In 104 career non-playoff starts, the four-time champion has 34 total turnovers, which includes a single throwaway since the start of 2025. He has logged four full seasons without a drop, and though it’s just two games, his 2026 campaign is shaping up to be the second “perfecto” of his career alongside 2021. To put that into perspective, 107 players already this season have self eliminated on drop turnovers alone, or about 14 percent of the active personnel in the league. Babbitt is now one of just four players ever to breach the 350 career goal milestone, and is 23 shy of moving into third place all-time. 10-to-1 goals to turnover ratio for a career is an unbelievable stat worthy of the king.
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