May 20, 2026
By Adam Ruffner
With abundant blowouts and a few chest-thumping contenders separating themselves at the top of these rankings, it may feel like parity is on pause for the moment. But the longest active winning streak sits at just six games (Boston), meaning that since July 19, 2025 (the final weekend of the regular season) every single UFA team has suffered at least one defeat. There's some real sprinters in 2026, but we're still over three months away from Madison and Championship Weekend in late August.
THE BACK 12
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Similar to Salt Lake following their Week 2 loss at Oakland, the Spiders banished San Diego outside of the walls of the top 10 in this list with their 10-goal rout of the Growlers. And after beginning the season with an offensive success rate over 60 percent following their first two outings, the Growlers O-line (absent QB Matt Miller) could not get any rhythm against Oakland’s suffocating coverage, and the team yielded a two-year high in turnovers on the game (28). San Diego’s red zone conversation rate has gone down over each game this season, which now places the team in the bottom six in the association. The Growlers have Oakland (once) and Austin (twice) in three of their next four games, which will likely determine whether San Diego sees the playoffs again or not.
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Houston collected their first win in 308 days with their Week 4 victory against Vegas. Mark Turner continues his torrid scoring pace, and is 11th in the league in scores per game (6) among players with at least two starts in 2026. Turner is also one of just seven players to average at least 200 throwing and 200 receiving yards per game, giving the Havoc one of the true hybrid weapons in the UFA.
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Chicago and Indianapolis continue to experience offensive woes as they both integrate playbooks with nearly fully overturned offenses from last year. The 2026 debut of Union franchise cornerstone Pawel Janas corresponded with a precipitous drop in turnovers for Chicago, and a stabilizing of drives, particularly near the end zone; the Union converted a tidy 11-of-11 on red zone chances against the formidable Minnesota defense. The AlleyCats, meanwhile, cannot shut off the turnover valve, and have amassed 55 over their first two appearances.
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Only the reigning MVP is averaging more scores per game than Malik Auger-Semmar so far this season, as Montreal’s superstar nearly upended Boston’s perfect season with his acrobatic heroics at the end of regulation last Saturday. Montreal continues to measure out like a playoff-level team in every area but the one that counts: Wins. And with a 1-4 record and just seven games remaining on their regular season schedule, time is running out for one of the most entertaining teams to end their six-season* playoff drought.
* Montreal won the Canada Cup in 2021, but has not qualified for the UFA playoffs since 2017.
Key: GPG = Goals Per Game; GPGA = Goals Per Game Against; TPG = Turnovers Per Game
22.Vegas Bighorns (-)
Record: 0-4
Last result: 25-8 (L) at Austin
Next game: May 15 at Houston
Team stats: 11.3 GPG (22ND) / 24.0 (19TH) / 34.0 TPG (22ND)
21. Oregon Steel (-)
Record: 0-4
Last result: 24-13 (L) vs Oakland
Next game: May 23 vs San Diego
Team stats: 13.6 GPG (20TH) / 23.8 GPGA (18TH) / 27.4 TPG (21ST)
20. Pittsburgh Thunderbirds (-)
Record: 0-2
Last result: 21-17 (L) vs Madison
Next game: May 29 at New York
Team stats: 20.5 GPG (10TH) / 26.5 GPGA (20TH) / 18.5 TPG (14TH)
19. Houston Havoc (-)
Record: 1-3
Last result: 15-13 (W) vs Vegas
Next game: May 30 vs Seattle
Team stats: 15.8 GPG (17TH) / 23.0 GPGA (17TH) / 24.3 TPG (19TH)
18. Colorado Apex (-)
Record: 1-4
Last result: 31-14 (L) at New York
Next game: May 29 vs Oregon
Team stats: 16.0 GPG (16TH) / 26.8 GPGA (21ST) / 25.0 TPG (20TH)
17. Philadelphia Phoenix (-)
Record: 0-2
Last result: 31-14 (L) at Carolina
Next game: May 24 at Boston
Team stats: 15.5 GPG (T-18TH) / 27.5 GPGA (22ND) / 23.0 TPG (18TH)
16. Chicago Union (-1)
Record: 0-2
Last result: 22-12 (L) at Minnesota
Next game: May 16 vs Minnesota
Team stats: 13.5 GPG (21ST) / 21.0 GPGA (T-15TH) / 21.0 TPG (16TH)
15. Indianapolis AlleyCats (-2)
Record: 0-2
Last result: 21-13 (L) vs Minnesota
Next game: May 29 vs Chicago
Team stats: 15.5 GPG (T-18TH) / 20.0 GPGA (T-12TH) / 22.5 TPG (17TH)
14. Montreal Royal (+2)
Record: 1-4
Last result: 21-19 (L, OT) vs Boston
Next game: May 23 vs Toronto
Team stats: 20.2 GPG (12TH) / 21.0 GPGA (T-15TH) / 16.5 TPG (T-10TH)
13. Seattle Cascades (+1)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 18-12 (W) at Oregon
Next game: May 30 at Houston
Team stats: 20.3 GPG (11TH) / 17.3 GPGA (6TH) / 18.0 TPG (13TH)
12. Toronto Rush (-)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 18-17 (W) vs Montreal
Next game: May 23 at Montreal
Team stats: 19.0 GPG (14TH) / 19.3 GPGA (11TH) / 17.0 TPG (12TH)
11. San Diego Growlers (-4)
Record: 1-2
Last result: 25-15 (L) at Oakland
Next game: May 23 at Vegas
Team stats: 17.0 GPG (15TH) / 20.7 GPGA (14th) / 16.0 TPG (T-8TH)
THE TOP 10
I still consider there to be some intrigue at the top of the mountain beyond just the top two teams, with both Minnesota and DC showing major strengths, and whoever emerges from the scrum of the South Division offering worthy adversaries for Boston and Oakland in a potential Championship Weekend bracket. But as the season wears on and Spiders double-digit wins pile up, the real question becomes if Oakland can sustain their historic, record-setting start for another three months, or suffer a similar fate and postseason fall-off like last year’s much-hyped Chicago team? The three walk-off endings in four weeks between playoff-hopeful contenders, I think, has scrambled my brain a bit in trying to determine what information matters at this early stage in the schedule, and what will surely become irrelevant in a few short weeks' time.
10. Madison Radicals (+1)
Record: 2-0
Last result: 21-17 (W) at Pittsburgh
Next game: May 31 vs Minnesota
Team stats: 20.0 GPG (13TH) / 17.5 GPGA (7TH) / 16.5 TPG (T-10TH)
By taking care of business with two road wins over divisional opponents installing new offenses, this young Radicals squad has set itself up nicely for the real gauntlet part of their schedule over the coming weeks. Madison will play seven games between now and July 3, with all seven matchups coming against prospective playoff squads including Minnesota (once), Salt Lake (once), Indy (THREE TIMES), and Chicago (twice). In Madison’s retooled spread attack, Nico Ranabhat has become a focal point for his ability to win one-on-one matchups, and the fifth year striker is averaging per game team highs in scores (5.5), completions (35), and total yards (414).
9. Salt Lake Shred (+1)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 26-16 (W) at Colorado
Next game: May 30 vs Oregon
Team stats: 21.3 GPG (T-7TH) / 18.3 GPGA (T-9TH) / 19.0 (15TH)
The Shred are still in the midst of a multi-week bye, and will likely be 5-1 by the time they square off in Seattle on June 13 with the ‘Scades. By that time, the Salt Lake schedule will rocket into one of the toughest finishing kicks in the league, with contests against Madison, Minnesota, as well as two-game sets against both Oakland and the aforementioned Seattle. The team’s turnover rate has crept back up to disconcerting levels, as their high octane playstyle on both sides of the disc has too often turned the dial past the point of reason; the Shred have had back-to-back games with 20+ turnovers for the first time since their inaugural season in 2022.
8. Austin Sol (-)
Record: 4-0
Last result: 25-8 (W) vs Vegas
Next game: May 31 vs Seattle
Team stats: 25.5 GPG (3RD) / 17.3 GPGA (T-4TH) / 15.5 TPG (7TH)
This placement in the ranking is definitely a disservice to a Sol squad that currently owns a tiebreaker advantage over the two-spots-higher Atlanta team Austin edged out in Week 1. But with that April 25 double overtime win fading further in the rearview mirror, and some frankly filler results beating up Houston and Vegas, the Sol are a tough team to track, just like they entered the season. Kyle Henke, though, is continuing to put up the most efficient numbers of his career in Year 9, and each week moves closer to cracking the top 20 all-time in scoring.
7. Carolina Flyers (-3)
Record: 3-1
Last result: 23-22 (L, 2OT) at Atlanta
Next game: May 23 vs Atlanta (Friday Night Frisbee)
Team stats: 25.3 GPG (4TH) / 17.3 GPGA (T-4TH) / 16.0 TPG (T-8TH)
Jacob Fairfax. Can we just start there? In one of the most action-packed games in UFA history, Fairfax towered above the fray with multiple buzzer-beater goals and a sideline toe-tap goal that could’ve been the game winner in the regulation with under a minute on the clock. The eight-score evening moved Fairfax into 20th all-time, and his 569 receiving yards against Atlanta now stands as the single-game high mark for the 2026 season. It took two overtimes to put down the Flyers in Week 4, even as they endured a quiet injury to Allan Laviolette that sidelined him after just 12 points played. The Hustle got Round 1 of the four-game season series, but as Carolina team leaders indicated in this week’s Toss, the Flyers still favor themselves to win out.
6. Atlanta Hustle (+3)
Record: 3-2
Last result: 23-22 (W, 2OT) vs Carolina
Next game: May 23 at Carolina (Friday Night Frisbee)
Team stats: 24.6 GPG (5TH) / 18.0 GPGA (8TH) / 12.6 TPG (3RD)
One of the most snakebitten franchises in overtime in recent years, the Hustle finally found redemption as Hayden Austin-Knab jammed the Flyers final end zone attempt and sent Atlanta’s rivals packing with a perfectly placed final blow to Kenni Taylor in sudden death. Austin-Knab has been hulking out with big throws and catches, and his closing sequence last Saturday is one of the most clutch individual performances in recent memory. And how about this Hustle D-line that is converting a league-best 72 percent of their break chances through five games, while also averaging the fifth most break scores per game (10.4) with a rotating cast (no pun intended) of starters. Even with a broken hand, Brett Hulsmeyer reprised his defensive starter role in Week 4 with a three-block game, including a handblock in the first OT. Two road losses by two combined goals makes Atlanta the most battle-tested of any team at this juncture of the year.
5. New York Empire (+1)
Record: 2-1
Last result: 31-14 (W) vs Colorado
Next game: May 23 vs DC
Team stats: 26.7 GPG (2ND) / 18.3 GPGA (T-9TH) / 10.7 TPG (2ND)
For the second time in three home games in 2026, the Empire posted a nearly perfect offensive performance, and tallied just eight total turnovers as a team. Alex Atkins is on pace for around 80 total scores and nearly 8,000 yards of offense for the regular season, a scoring/yardage milestone that has only been achieved twice in a single season, both times by Pawel Janas (2022 and 2023) and both instances requiring playoff games. And yet for all of their top-of-the-lineup star power and noteworthy offseason additions, the DC overtime loss and the rotations the Empire ran against Colorado reveal New York to still possess some questions about who will be filling out the back end of their roster come playoffs.
4. DC Breeze (+1)
Record: 3-1
Last result: 32-16 (W) vs Colorado
Next game: May 23 vs New York
Team stats: 23.5 GPG (6TH) / 20.0 GPGA (T-12TH) / 14.0 TPG (T-4TH)
Like a lawnmower getting started up for the first time of the year, this DC offense took a few pulls (and two games) to get going, but now they are buzzing after three consecutive wins and 58 goals combined in their last two games. The fresh tip-of-the-spear Breeze attack that features AJ Merriman, Christian Boxley, and Miles Grovic could be the most explosive trio this perennial playoff team has ever employed, and Sean Mott has been on fire from deep targeting his new teammates. The effect has been twofold as DC is both more dangerous from range than in the past several seasons, and has also reversed the negative red zone trend that followed them from 2025 into the start of 2026; last year’s 17th ranked red zone squad has shot up to sixth in this season.
3. Minnesota Wind Chill (-)
Record: 3-0
Last result: 20-15 (W) at Chicago
Next game: May 31 at Madison
Team stats: 21.0 GPG (9TH) / 13.3 GPGA (1ST) / 14.0 TPG (T-4TH)
This Wind Chill defense is living up to its historic billing. But if Minnesota is going to make their third straight championship game appearance—and win their second UFA title since 2024—the offense will need more facilitator performances like Gordon Larson’s in Week 4. The soon-to-be 26-year-old went 33-of-34 from the field with six assists and nearly 300 passing yards, but more importantly than the stats was Larson’s ability in keeping the offensive motion fluid, and helping Minnesota avoid the sticky situations that can snowball, like what happened at the beginning of the game in their home opener a few weeks ago. Also with eight blocks in just his first three starts, Justin Burnett is on pace for a career year in takeaways.
2. Oakland Spiders (-)
Record: 5-0
Last result: 25-15 (W) vs San Diego
Next game: May 30 vs San Diego
Team stats: 26.8 GPG (1ST) / 14.0 GPGA (2ND) / 14.4 (6TH)
There’s no pretension to Oakland’s winning ways. On offense or defense, they line up seven players across from their opponents, and simply outrun and out-execute them all over the turf. The Spiders are averaging nearly as many break scores per game (13.8) as turnovers (14.4), which is a kind of efficiency nirvana if you’re a coach, I imagine. Speaking of, and while there’s no doubt about the talent stacked all over this roster, the current “Coach Of The Year”, by a wide margin in my opinion, is Oakland’s first year skipper Liam Kreiss. The lineups and player assignments feel optimized nearly every quarter of action, and most-if-not-all of the role reversals and line versatility are seeing immediate, positive impacts; Evan Magsig and Daniel Ritthaler both came into the season prepared and ambitious, and they’re both playing like First Team All-UFAers.
1. Boston Glory (-)
Record: 3-0
Last result: 21-19 (W, OT) at Montreal
Next game: May 24 vs Philadelphia
Team stats: 21.3 GPG (T-7TH) / 16.7 GPGA (3RD) / 10.0 TPG (1ST)
Something about the tall grass and clutch playmaking of Montreal seems to ensnare Boston whenever they’ve traveled north of the border over the past couple of seasons. Even Tobe Decraene had an uncharacteristic four-throwaway game after going nearly perfect on throws in his first two starts of the season. But more than any individual effort, Boston showed the heart of a champion as a team for five quarters, absorbed some absolute haymakers from the Royal, and came away with a gritty road win to not lose their grip on first place in the East Division. Oscar Graff and the Glory D-line continue to be more timely than toothy—Boston has just two double-digit block games in their last 10 outings dating back to 2025—and are top four for the third straight season in break conversion efficiency.
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