NWSL Initial Offseason Grades: Angel City Makes an Early Splash
NWSL offseasons are famously known for their flurries of wheeling-and-dealing drama, and this one has been no exception. A double expansion draft to welcome California clubs Angel City and San Diego, as well as the move of the annual college draft to December, created the need for some intense roster jostling before the calendar even hit 2022. The expansion draft turned into a competition to secure protection through trades, and the deals didn’t stop heading into the college draft. Several current and former U.S. women’s national team members even changed clubs, drawing additional eyeballs on a league that’s heading into its 10th season.
While there are still two months to go until preseason, meaning more signings and trades are inevitable, the bulk of the player movement damage has likely been done. So it’s time to check in on all 12 clubs and offer a grade for the offseason each has had to date—and what each could still use before preseason commences in February.
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Angel City FC: A
The 2022 expansion club is off to a good start before it ever takes the pitch. Four months after signing star USWNT forward Christen Press, Angel City has finally been able to build out its roster around her. Simone Charley, acquired from Portland, could thrive on the front line with Press in a regular starting role, and Savannah McCaskill, Tyler Lussi, Jasmyne Spencer and 21-year-old Japanese forward Jun Endo round out a promising position group (and if Everton’s Claire Emslie, taken in the expansion draft, comes back to the U.S., that’s another win up top).
The Los Angeles club made another splash when it traded for Red Stars standouts Sarah Gorden and Julie Ertz. Gorden started every game for Chicago last season and has emerged as one of the league’s best center backs, and Ertz, if healthy (she missed almost the entire 2021 NWSL season with injury), can be an anchor at either CB or defensive midfield. Trading for DiDi Haračić as its presumptive starting goalie was smart, and acquiring Canadian Vanessa Gilles, Jamaica captain Allyson Swaby and the Spirit’s Paige Nielsen further strengthens the ACFC defense. The biggest question here is in midfield, though Dani Weatherholt was a savvy pickup in the expansion draft.
Biggest need: A proven attacking midfielder
Orlando Pride: A-
The strategy seems clear for the Pride this offseason: The franchise is finally starting fresh, having moved on from several fan-favorite veterans and hiring longtime UCF and UCLA coach Amanda Cromwell. Gone are stars Alex Morgan, Ali Krieger and Ashlyn Harris. Jodie Taylor is gone, too, and while Marta's contract option was exercised, it’s unclear whether she will return for a sixth year in purple. After a bright start to 2021, the Pride plummeted to an eighth-place finish, and a semi-overhaul with an eye toward the future gives an organization that has sometimes seemed rudderless a real direction in which to go. If there’s a criticism here, it was trading Morgan without managing to get San Diego’s No. 1 draft pick in return.
Still, this roster is looking increasingly young, and Orlando had a strong college draft with three first-round picks, including All-American UCLA forward Mia Fishel. One vet still around is Sydney Leroux, and her leadership will be even more crucial with longtime captain Harris departed. The draft-day trade of talented young CB Phoebe McClernon to the Reign feels like the move that could most backfire on Orlando, but overall, this was a franchise that needed change. An immediate impact might not be clear in the results in 2022, as this rebuild will be a multiyear process.
Biggest need: Defensive help and a capable backup goalkeeper behind Erin McLeod.
Racing Louisville: A-
An under-the-radar subplot of the double expansion draft was the fact that Louisville, which itself was picking players in an expansion draft a year ago, protected just three of the 16 players (14 drafted, two traded for) it added as a result of expansion in 2020. It partly shows how much its priorities have already changed—for example, key acquisitions Ebony Salmon, Nadia Nadim and Gemma Bonner came later—but also how most of the big swings it took (drafting the rights to Tobin Heath, Caitlin Foord and Alanna Kennedy) haven’t yet panned out.
This offseason, though, is going smoother. The one swing that did work—drafting the rights to Press, which later got flipped to Angel City for the No. 2 pick in the 2022 college draft—just officially turned into Florida State star Jaelin Howell, who many thought would go No. 1 and who Louisville has to be thrilled fell into its lap. Racing also had the No. 4 pick, which it used to draft USC’s Savannah DeMelo, and together the two could be its midfield of the future. It traded away the No. 6 pick to get Courage forward Jessica McDonald, a dependable presence up top who could provide vital leadership to a young roster. In moving on from veteran goalie Michelle Betos, it’s officially Katie Lund time between the posts. Is the 25-year-old ready for the full-time job?
Biggest need: Any experience added to the midfield would be a plus.
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North Carolina Courage: B+
It’s rebuilding time in Cary, N.C., as the firing of disgraced coach Paul Riley has ushered in a new era. Abby Dahlkemper, Sam Mewis and McDonald were all traded, and a slew of promising young talent has arrived. That list includes midfielder Brianna Pinto and defenders Kiki Pickett and Malia Berkely, as well as three first-round 2022 picks, headlined by midfielder Emily Gray. North Carolina also operated shrewdly while earning expansion draft protection, giving up less than many others. With the likes of Lynn Williams, Debinha and Abby Erceg still anchoring the Courage’s spine, this could be a rebuild that simultaneously sees progress for both the short- and long-term.
Interestingly, the Courage also welcomed back Jaelene Daniels this week, 13 months after she announced her retirement. Daniels was last one of the NWSL’s top left backs and a key cog in North Carolina’s former dominant run, but she’s also well known for her anti-LGBTQ views, which included passing up a USWNT call-up in 2017 because it required wearing a jersey with rainbow Pride numbers. On Monday, the Courage’s supporters’ group called Daniels’s return “unacceptable.” The NCC roster has changed a lot in the last year, and it remains to be seen whether her stance will cause intrateam tension. Plus, what does this mean for Carson Pickett, who had settled into the LB role quite nicely?
Biggest need: With McDonald gone, forward depth is suddenly looking thin.
San Diego Wave FC: B+
San Diego hasn’t received the buzz of its Southern California counterpart, but it’s made a number of high-profile moves itself. The club traded for Morgan and Dahlkemper, though the former hasn’t always lived up to her national-team form in NWSL play and the latter is coming off a somewhat rocky 2021. Still, acquiring a talent like Morgan without surrendering the No. 1 college draft pick was a major victory. In dealing for Kailen Sheridan, the Wave landed arguably the league’s best keeper, and Tegan McGrady, Christen Westphal, Kristen McNabb and Kaleigh Riehl were all quality additions on the back line.
After that, though, things look murkier. The front line is in pretty good shape with Morgan, Taylor, Katie Johnson and rookies Kelsey Turnbow and Marleen Schimmer. But what of its virtually empty midfield? With that No. 1 draft pick, San Diego passed up Howell to select Stanford defender Naomi Girma. She is an excellent talent, but her future is likely at center back, and Howell could have slotted in—maybe even from Day 1—as the Wave’s still-open six. Will they regret not drafting Howell, or does manager Casey Stoney have an international lined up?
Biggest need: A midfield—or even any proven midfielder.
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Kansas City Current: B
In addition to finally deciding on a name, the Current’s big move this offseason was trading for Sam Mewis. She didn’t come cheap, but Kansas City now has a major star player to build around after a rocky first season that saw the franchise finish in last place. K.C. was the only existing team in the league that did not have to worry about the expansion draft, as the NWSL granted it full protection from both California squads when it moved over from the now-defunct Utah Royals. Because of that, the club’s other offseason dealings have been limited, but it secured extensions for key pieces Hallie Mace, Kristen Hamilton, Elizabeth Ball and Lo’eau LaBonta. As things stand, this team doesn’t yet look ready to be a playoff contender, but this offseason has been a step in the right direction.
Biggest need: A top striker. Kansas City scored only 15 goals in the 2021 regular season, easily the lowest in the NWSL.
Washington Spirit: B
The reigning NWSL champs haven’t made any substantial changes to their roster, which is a good thing when you’re a month removed from a league title. With three U.S. players (Andi Sullivan, Kelley O’Hara and Emily Sonnett), the Spirit opted to prioritize making a deal to protect that trio from the California clubs. That meant losing defenders McGrady and Nielsen, who combined to make 21 starts in 2021. McGrady, only 24, looked like the club’s left back of the future, and her departure leaves an opening on the back line.
Otherwise, Washington’s offseason has largely consisted of promoting interim Kris Ward to permanent coach and selecting five players in the college draft. While it’s not factoring into this grading, all eyes remain on owner Steve Baldwin, who is still in the process of selling the team after the late-season reckoning around the club’s toxic culture.
Biggest need: Left back.
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Portland Thorns: B-
The Thorns were active before the expansion draft, and they ended up dealing Charley, Lussi, Westphal and 2021 draftee Amirah Ali to earn roster protection. Those losses are notable but don’t overly change the team’s core as it enters a new era with coach Rhian Wilkinson and GM Karina LeBlanc. Portland will be without star midfielder Crystal Dunn, who is due to give birth in May, for at least part of ’22, and it will be interesting to see whether the club has any short-term international signings on the way.
The Charley-Lussi deal netted the Thorns the No. 13 pick in last weekend’s college draft, which they used to select USF’s Sydny Nasello. But both Nasello and the team wound up under fire on draft night due to her troubling Twitter activity, leading to Nasello offering an apology and Wilkinson saying the club didn’t do “the work needed on the social media side.” Portland has a decision to make on whether to move forward with its top pick, particularly given the response of its own fans.
Biggest need: Charley is the biggest roster departure, and the Thorns could use some solidifying at forward.
NJ/NY Gotham FC: C+
Gotham has had perhaps the most surprising offseason so far, with the club appearing to push all of its chips into the 2022 season and the short term in general after its fifth-place finish. All three of its goalies (Sheridan, Haračić and Mandy McGlynn) are now gone, with the team making waves with its trade for Orlando’s Harris and Krieger. The 36-year-old Harris, who is coming off a strong NWSL season but is a decade older than Sheridan, will clearly step in as starting keeper, and 6' 3" rookie Hensley Hancuff might have to be the backup.
The other major trade Gotham made was getting Kristie Mewis from Houston (via San Diego, which picked her up in the expansion draft to flip her to NJ/NY for $200,000 in allocation money). Mewis, assuming she doesn’t go overseas, will bring a threatening attacking presence to the Gotham midfield. The move for the 30-year-old as the club separately sent 2021 No. 3 pick Pinto to North Carolina is again a signal that this franchise feels its window to chase a title is now. But at the moment, it’s hard to tell whether its collective moves have made this roster tangibly better than the ’21 edition.
Biggest need: More front line support around Midge Purce and Ifeoma Onumonu would be ideal, especially with Évelyne Viens having been loaned to a Swedish club for 2022.
OL Reign: C+
The Reign were always headed for significant changes this offseason due to the expiring loans of Dzsenifer Marozsán, Sarah Bouhaddi and Eugénie Le Sommer. The international trio helped transform the club for 2021, and at this point it hasn’t announced whether any will return nor has it made any major deals to replace them. Landing an experienced goalie seems like a must—perhaps OL would be interested in a reunion with the now-available Betos. McClernon was a solid pickup from Orlando, and Nikki Stanton adds some physicality to the midfield.
The Reign used their first-round draft pick on St. John’s forward Zsanett Kaján, but their midfield is a bigger question mark despite retaining NWSL MVP Jess Fishlock. Coach Laura Harvey is famously fond of trades, so perhaps OL isn’t done making moves—or perhaps it has more international signings on the horizon. For now, though, we’re left looking for more.
Biggest need: A proven goalkeeper.
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Houston Dash: C
The Dash have had a fairly quiet offseason, which raises doubts on whether they’ve done enough to improve a team that gave away a playoff spot with a brutal final month of the season. Unlike many of its peers, Houston opted not to negotiate for any form of expansion draft protection, and the big news was that Kristie Mewis was picked up by San Diego (which then completed a planned trade of her to Gotham). The loss of Mewis, who was one of the stalwarts of the club over the last few years, will sting, but immediate help may be on the way. The Dash protected a mystery international player who they said was contracted but yet to be announced, and signs (as well as the NWSL’s own website, briefly) point toward Mexico and Tigres midfielder María Sánchez, who did a three-game stint with Houston in June. The creative Sánchez would be a quality replacement for Mewis, whom the Dash received $150,000 in allocation money for losing.
Houston’s other moves look more like depth additions right now, but it did announce an intriguing loan acquisition this week in Argentinian teenager Paulina Gramaglia. The forward will turn 19 just before the 2022 season starts, but between her age and the inevitable adjustment to a new league, it might be too soon to expect a true impact.
Biggest need: Depth along the entire back line.
Chicago Red Stars: D+
The good: As the allocation system went away, Chicago signed U.S. players Tierna Davidson, Casey Krueger, Alyssa Naeher and Mallory Pugh to contracts with the club. The bad: Ertz and Gorden are gone, as are forwards Makenzy Doniak, Johnson and (the rights to) Turnbow, a second-round 2021 draft pick. Those five players were the hefty—and questionable—price the Red Stars paid for expansion draft protection, and they also dealt reserve midfielder Stanton to the Reign for a third-round college draft pick.
It seems most of those players asked out of Chicago—a completely understandable request given the public revelations about Rory Dames’s abusive tenure and the fallout of his abrupt departure. But with six players out, no one (currently) arriving aside from rookies and no new coach yet, it’s hard not to view this as a step back, at least in the short term. This roster is still full of talent, and the Red Stars made the NWSL final in 2021 despite not having Ertz for the full season, not having Naeher for half of it and having other key absences during playoff games. But this is an offseason grade, and it’s been a tough one in the Windy City so far.
Biggest need: Building back the depth it lost in its pre-expansion draft moves.
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