Week Five in the PLL and were back after the All-Star break. Week 5 Texas brings us some great matchups. It feels like the season has gone on forever, and that’s not a bad thing. Some huge games on the docket with playoff implications. The storyline going into Saturday is the Chrome sitting Connor Farrell. A week prior he’s an All-Star, now he sits for the last place Chrome. Win and Coach Soudan looks like a genius, lose and he will face more scrutiny. The other three matchups look to be toss ups. The Waterdogs and Archers will light it up, the Cannons and Redwoods are Saturday Nights Main Event, and the Whips and Chaos look to be a fun Sunday showdown.
Chrome(+1.5) vs. Atlas(-1.5) Saturday July 29th 6pm – ESPN+
Another game, another attack line for the Chrome. Any other weekend and we would dive into that, but the big news is Connor Farrell sitting. The Milkman is facing off at 71 pct, but this week he becomes another casualty to the Faceoff rule. Look for the Atlas to come out swinging in this one. They will secure possessions with Baptiste at the X, and the Chrome are banking on their defense and Sean Sconone to make stops. It’s a bold move and expect Sconone to have his best numbers save wise this week.
Pick: Atlas
Cannons(-1.5) vs. Redwoods(+1.5) Saturday July 29th 8:30pm ESPN+
This game is going to come down to midfield production for the Redwoods. They enter this weekend as underdogs and for good reason. The Cannons are surging, and it will come down to the woods ability to stop the 1-2 punch of Asher Nolting and Marcus Holman. Can Holman continue his hot streak? The smart money says yes. The Redwoods will sit Myles Jones this weekend, and Sergio Perkovic now suits up as a SSDM. Will that give him some opportunities in transition? You bet. Look to see him go from offense to defense and get the green light in transition. If the offense shows up and they get the expected production from TD Ierlan, the woods will be hard to stop.
Pick: Redwoods
Archers(-1.5) vs. Waterdogs(+1.5) Sunday, July 30th 3:00pm ABC ESPN+
A great game for the ABC telecast. Two great teams from top to bottom. The Archers will win the faceoff battle, but can they have better decisions in transition? If the Archers can win the battle of the 32 second shot clock it will be bad news for the Waterdogs. The midfield for the Waterdogs can cause some issues if the Archers defense isn’t up to the task. Grant Ament is back in the lineup after a nagging injury so expect to see him working his way back in.
Pick: Archers
Whipsnakes(-1.5) vs. Chaos(+1.5) Sunday July 30th 5:30pm ESPN2
The Whipsnakes will be in desperation mode searching for a win this week. They return some players off injury and expect Zed Williams to have another great game. The matchup between him and Jared Neumann that’s must watch lacrosse. This game will come down to possessions as two rookies will battle it out at the faceoff X. Petey LaSalla has had moments of brilliance this season and will look to tap into that. The Chaos have a clear advantage in the goal and the real question is what will the Whips look like with Kyle Bernlohr sidelined with an injury.
Pick: Chaos
