Editor’s note: This is the first of what we intend to be a monthly series in which we assess the relative levels of panic at each position group.
February in MLS means preseason. It means fans are equal parts hopeful and on edge. It means Concacaf Champions Cup, and it means the start of the MLS regular season. All is sunshine and rainbows in Seattle — oh, sorry, it’s not June yet. Let’s try again — all is sunshine and rainbows in Marbella — wait, what’s that? Still no sunshine? Uh … One more time: It’s all sunshine and rainbows on Sounders online forums — Okay, so maybe things aren’t exactly red roses as the Sounders winded down preseason and played their first two competitive games of the year. Let’s check in on the squad.
Goalkeepers
Andrew Thomas
It’s finally his time! He’s been patient, reliable and spectacular when the situation demanded heroics. Good in preseason, has had a penchant for eye-catching shot-stopping but can certainly use a brush-up on his distribution. You can’t really fault him for the two competitive goals against so far. And boy did it make my heart flutter to see him stand tall in a 1v1 with Morgan Guilavogui, and then leap across the mouth of the goal cat-like to ensure Zavier Gozo’s wide effort stayed wide.
Panic Level: Glitter glue. Looks excellent, does the job it needs to, but you still have to make sure it doesn’t cause a mess in its distribution (pun intended).
Stefan Frei
A calming presence in the locker room and in training — he’s been around for forever and it would be stranger to have a roster without him than him at least on the bench.
Panic Level: A picnic blanket at the park. Do you need it to be comfortable? Probably not. It’s nice protection, though.
Max Anchor
A very young acquisition, unlikely to play a role outside of training. Was a little rough in pre-season, but playing with an extremely makeshift second team could have something to do with that. Every roster slot is a dice roll, though, and maybe he earns himself a real spot in the future, or proves his readiness with the Defiance.
Panic Level: Breathing easy. Not really much to worry about here over a guy who probably doesn’t play anyways.
Widebacks
Semantics, semantics, semantics. If they’re projected to play wingback or fullback, they’re going here.
Alex Roldan
Seattle’s do-it-all man. He’s been talked about more frequently in the last year, but it’s still not enough. Playing right back, center back, or in the midfield pivot, you simply don’t need to worry about him. Nothing in preseason or the first two games of the year changed that, though there was a brief moment vs RSL after a wonderful emergency defending play where it looked like he might have pulled a hamstring just a few minutes after sliding into Yeimar’s spot. He did manage to play out the rest of the game and looked perfectly reliable.
Panic Level: Golden brown, buttery toast. Can be eaten at any time, is remarkably versatile, and you’re reminded just how good it can be when you remember it exists.
Nouhou
A more calm and composed Nouhou is the story of the winter. After captaining Cameroon to an AFCON quarter-final (losing to an eventual finalist in Morocco), he came back a different player. It seemed that his place in the team may finally have become a bit more tenuous with Reed Baker-Whiting poised for a breakout, but now feels firmly back in the starting lineup given the homegrown’s departure to Nashville shortly before the start of the regular season. The beginning of the year was mostly more of the same from him, ball recycling and generally good defense (despite losing a couple of 1v1s). Nothing spectacular, but it is worth noting that teams this year have actually been tracking his runs forward rather than letting him enter the final third wide open; that’s an indirect sign that he’s shrunk the size of the black hole he is on offense, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. No red cards or wild actions are positive, too.
Panic Level: A full tea kettle, silent but heating. It makes you wonder: how long do you have until it starts loudly fussing and boils over?
Paul Rothrock
Freshly off signing a big, shiny new contract, it seemed like he’d have to fight hard to earn a starting spot all over again. In preseason, Rothrock was one of just a couple experienced figures in the second team - often captaining those sides - but just couldn’t get a chance to play with the penned starters. But Paulie Primetime is inevitable. After Jordan Morris went down early in the first game, he wasted no time making his mark with a memorable assist to open the scoring that said “I just want it more than everyone else”, then notching the second himself. By Matchday 2, he was back in the XI to Rusnak’s left.
Panic Level: Your favorite pair of blue jeans. You want to give them a break to get washed, but you always find a reason to put them back on. What’s better than a pair of pants you already know fits perfectly and gives you that extra bit of confidence to be yourself?
Kalani Kossa-Rienzi
Kalani is about as Working Man’s Man as one gets this year. Nothing incredibly impressive this preseason, just doing his job and doing it effectively when called on. He’ll get his chances and minutes this year — already having earned a half-hour vs RSL — but it feels like he might not reach higher heights this year unless Alex Roldan makes a permanent move to centerback. But that’s okay, he doesn’t need to be more than that, and competition is good anyways.
Panic Level: A minor argument breaks out at a neighborhood watering hole, other noise and conversations making the atmosphere busy. Behind the bar, the bartender smoothly goes about his business, taking orders with ease and making exact change quickly. Just an ordinary day
Cody Baker
Had a good little preseason, looking relatively solid helping anchor an extremely green back line for the second team. Playing as an outside centerback seems to be a good position for him, but it’s unclear if he can show enough beyond being decent at everything to earn some playing time.
Panic Level: A box of pancake mix in the back of the cupboard. He’s there, he can even be surprisingly delightful mixed with some of those chocolate chips sitting next to him, a mushy banana and some maple syrup. But are you actually sitting down on the weekend to make pancakes? Brian Schmetzer isn’t often.
Centerbacks
Jackson Ragen
Ever present, ever reliable. I find myself continuing to wonder how he’s yet to make an appearance on the international stage. Every fire that comes up in his area, he puts out. His passing metrics remain near the top of his position group. His tackles are timed exceptionally well. He’s lately been performing regardless of who he is paired with. He’s a man on the rise.
Panic Level: The Gore-Tex raincoat that never gets put away long enough to make it into the closet. Working hard, performs exceptions well, and might make you sweat from time to time when the defense makes a fast break just a little too hard-I mean, when the rain comes down a little too fast.
Yeimar
While he looked fine in preseason, Yeimar has, uh… Not impressed after two matchdays. He had a few shockers of a game last year, too, and one may begin to think that his 34-year-old body might not be able to keep up at an elite level in his role that demands plenty of athleticism and emergency defending much longer with Nouhou ranging forward (for better or worse), and Jackson Ragen’s slower pace occasionally landing him behind the play. There is still an elite defender in there if the system shifts appropriately to compensate, though. This team has no ready-made replacements at this exact moment, and especially not with the rest of the centerback core moaning and groaning in the infirmary.
Panic Level: You just woke up from a terrible nap. Your mouth is cotton balls, your hair is a mess. You go to the bathroom mirror to splash water on your face and only to see fabric lines mangling it and your arms. You hope the feelings of nausea fade but it just might linger the rest of the day.
Stuart Hawkins
Still just a teenager, Stu has missed quite a lot of time to injury. He’s been quite impressive whenever he has played in the past, but that’s been a problem so far in 2026. He’s been a non-factor, joining Sailor and Kim on the injury list and remains out for another likely 3-4 weeks. That being said, it does appear that he’s put on quite a bit of muscle and is filling out his frame. Between his passing, his pace and his strength, he feels like an ideal mix of the best of Ragen and Yeimar, he’s a player to be excited about. When he returns, expect Stu to earn a surprising number of minutes.
Panic Level: It’s been 3 hours of standing on the dock with no action. A few air bubbles near your fishing bob. Your heartrate begins to spike as you prepare to lure in The Big Catch. Then… nothing. You’re frustrated. There’s obviously fish here. Why won’t they take the bait? You’re tempted to go home, but something tells you to stay.
Kim Kee-hee
Kim’s back for 2026 … or will be soon! After spending preseason out injured, he did manage to train in full before Matchday 2, though did not feature on the bench. He should be back on the bench ahead of St Louis, though, providing some much needed defensive depth and veteran calm.
Panic Level: You’re leaving the house, locking the door behind you and walking to your car. You pat your pocket and your wallet is missing. Panicked, you check your back pocket to find it there. Relief floods over you.
Ryan Sailor
Ryan Sailor’s been good in the past. Back in 2022, Inter Miami went under a bit of a defensive renaissance that directly coincided with himself and Chris McVey becoming the starting centerback pairing. McVey may have been more of the 1a, but they were both instrumental in Miami making a playoff push. He seemed like a good replacement to Jon Bell. It’s a shame that Sailor has been unable to participate in a single training session this season, and his timeline has him still a ways out. Given the lack of depth available at centerback, hopefully he returns sooner than later given the imminent start of fixture congestion.
Panic Level: A catalog from your favorite store is mixed in with your daily mail. There’s some decent sales, but when you look closer, it doesn’t actually list any prices. How in the world are you to know whether 20% off constitutes a good enough price to purchase an item?! 20% off an item priced $100 too high to begin with is nothing!
Central Midfielders
Cristian Roldan
Mr. Sounder has officially earned the club captaincy this February, something that was an inevitability. His level remains high as he continues his push to make the World Cup roster after having spent two years in the wilderness from the National Team. With Cristian sheltering the backline and having truly developed into arguably the top defensive midfielder in MLS, I couldn’t be more confident that his name comes first on the team sheet every week.
Panic Level: Brian Schmetzer, coffee cup in hand, Tommy Dutra at his side.
Hassani Dotson
An incredibly smart signing by Craig Waibel, providing depth if Obed stayed and a readymade replacement if he left. At his best, Dotson is a high-quality midfielder fully capable of starting in this league, at a level that compares comfortably with the departed Obed Vargas, while not being such a player that subbing him for the developing talent behind him on the depth chart would cause outrage. Dotson seems like an excellent fit culture-wise with the team, and has begun to look more comfortable learning his role next to Cristian Roldan and how his puzzle piece fits amongst the rest. Across the first couple games, he’s looked sharp in his passing and has been a stout defender, constantly hunting to retrieve the ball back. One slip-up against RSL does mar his resume, though, where he passed straight to the opposition, leading directly to the opening goal.
Panic Level: The Canadian/Danish Whisky War. There is no danger, just the giddiness of a new gift some time soon.
Snyder Brunell
The Sounders’ midfield machine keeps cooking, and first looks at Snyder give hints that he just might have the potential to be the best of them all. Brian Schmetzer has sung his praises, and for good reason. He’s smooth on the ball, calm in possession, is strong and dogged in defense and shows an ability to get into the attack and facilitate that Obed Vargas wasn’t quite capable of when he was Snyder’s age. He’s only had a handful of minutes, though, so it’s important to stay calm and remember that youth development is not linear and there will be stumbles along the way.
Panic Level: Fireworks. On a holiday that makes sense to have them, and you know they’re happening.
Nikola Petković
A relatively disappointing preseason. Like with others, he was in a young and inexperienced second team for the most part but didn’t do anything to improve his stock. He’ll take time to integrate into the team, and we’ll just have to wait and see with Nikola. That being said, he got his first cameo vs RSL, taking Albert Rusnak’s role at the No. 10. Despite the limited playing time — one regulation minute plus nearly 10 in stoppage time — his few touches were clean, some fancy footwork to maintain possession, facilitating ball circulation and generally being in position to help the team. There’s hope yet for Matt Doyle’s Breakout Player Candidate.
Panic Level: A clam is lodged in your fisherman nets. You weren’t looking for it, but now you have it. It proves difficult to open at first. You find your sharpest knife and just barely begin to crack it a hair. Inside, you catch a glint of something. Is it slime, or a pearl? Your heart races as you attempt to pull out more.
Sebastian Gomez
Kinda became the Sota Kitahara of 2026. He’s a midfielder who has shown plenty of promise, but isn’t likely to break in quite yet with several players — including multiple prospects — ahead of him. He’s been designated the Off-Roster Homegrown for 2026, though did manage to make the bench in Matchday 2. Expectations will stay low, and hopefully he becomes a leader for the Defiance this season.
Panic Level: Ohhhhhhhmmmmmmm. Ohhhhhhhhhmmmmmm. (Yeah, that’s the sound of meditation. Time to be calm and have patience - Sebas is one for the future.)
Attacking Midfielders
Albert Rusnák
Same old for Albert Rusnák. A strong start of the season for him, including a sailing headed goal with a level of aesthetic worthy of Swan Lake. He is the metronome in attack, dictating when the Sounders move forward and when they have patience, and it is a relief to know that at least one Designated Player can stay healthy consistently.
Panic Level: Walking down the sidewalk, humming your favorite song. The sun is out, and a light warm breeze catches your sleeves. Life is good. Maybe you’ll steak for dinner tonight. And a glass of wine. That sounds pretty good. Maybe even a dessert.
Yu Tsukanome
If you asked many first teamers last year which Defiance player impressed them most, their answer would be Yu Tsukanome. They had good reasons, his soccer IQ, his technical ability… All of it. However, he’s not quite done enough to make the bench yet this season. The Sounders’ signing him was a little more of a “if we don’t sign you, we’re going to lose you” kind of deal. He couldn’t just remain at Tacoma after having recorded 18 goals and 5 assists the previous season, and signing him to a first team contract gives him another year to develop after having proved he deserves at least a shot.
Panic Level: You’re five years old again. You’re on hour six of an eight hour road trip. It’s hot, and the AC is only kind of working. In the distance, you see the bright neon sign of a Dairy Queen. You begin chanting “ice cream Ice Cream ICE CREAM ICE CREAM!” with your sibling — we’ll call them Sario — that’s a pretty random name.
Your parents are exhausted from driving and cave; pulling into the parking lot. While they order, you run to the bathroom. Upon emerging, you see Sario contently licking an ice cream from down the restroom corridor — everyone waiting for you. Did they even order you ice cream? You begin the stages of grief:
“There’s no way they got ice cream for just Sario!” Then
“I can’t believe they only got ice cream for only Sario!”,
“I bet mine is coming out shortly”,
“I’m so sad I’m not gonna get ice cream,” and finally
“I’m not getting ice cream.”
But you haven’t rounded the corner yet. Maybe your ice cream is actually at the counter, just waiting to be seized. You don’t want to resent Sario for getting what you never did.
Wingers
Jesús Ferreira
Had an exceptionally strong preseason, scoring multiple goals and looking every bit energized and ready for the season, despite playing while being quite ill. Looked the perfect complement to Albert Rusnak in central midfield, and equally every bit the Top-5 pressing winger that Lobbing Scorchers’ shouted him out to be on last week’s Thursday show. He’s already been showing out in the regular season - threading one of the best through-balls you’ll see this season for an almost goal in Matchday 1, then nutmegging a defender on a wonderful assist to Rothrock to notch the Sounders’ second* goal that same game. The team will go as far as he can help carry it and carry it he’ll need to do with Jordan Morris and Pedro de la Vega out injured for extended periods.
Panic Level: A blanket fresh out of the dryer as you’re about to cozy down for a Sunday mid-day nap.
*Third. We’re not forgetting you, Hassani.
Paul Arriola
Six games and four goal contributions into his Sounders career, Paul Arriola’s season was done in a gut-wrenching manner. He fought like hell to come back stronger this year, working overtime with trainers to ensure he’d be back in time for 2026. While he played a minimal role during the Sounders’ preseason, Brian Schmetzer did make sure he made it onto the field to shake out his legs vs Colorado, jesting that Paul owed him a bottle of wine to make sure that happened. He also made a short cameo in Salt Lake, looking fast and fit. ACL injuries sometimes force players to take up to a full year to look like themselves again, but with Arriola’s freakish athleticism — even relative to his peers — he just might return to being the spark he was at the start of 2025.
Panic Level: From some unknown location, the Jaws theme begins playing. Paul’s hungry.
Georgi Minoungou
After his showing at AFCON — including a nice goal — it wasn’t certain Georgi would remain on the Sounders in 2026 after garnering interest from Hammarby in Sweden. But here he remains, and hopefully he can get up to speed with the team quickly after missing a fair chunk of preseason after departing to receive his green card. His first appearance wasn’t necessarily thrilling, not really taking players on with the running-downhill energy he usually has, but the game state didn’t demand it. He did a pretty decent job picking his moments to try a 1v1, and maintaining possession in other moments.
Panic Level: A shoulder-shrug. Whatever Georgi can provide is a bonus given this squad’s depth, but we don’t love that he’s apparently carrying a foot injury.
Pedro de la Vega
Oh, Pedro. Injuries have not been kind to him. Nothing to report on this front, other than that he and Paul Rothrock enjoyed some maté together in Europe during a rare moment of sunshine. He’ll be back after the World Cup break… hopefully.
Panic Level: It’s 2:16am. You’re out of your tent after duty called in the middle of the night. A pair of eyes stares at you through the darkness. Maybe it’s simply an owl, harmless. Maybe its something more. Demon-like. Dangerous. You might find out, or maybe it remains an eerie story you tell your friends about after the sun rises.
Strikers
Jordan Morris
It’s been a parabola this preseason for Jordan Morris. Finally feeling healthy and ready to get a full season under his belt as the Sounders’ striker, he’s quickly shunted to the wing due to player availability. He’s a team player, though, and still looks OK. Then 8 minutes into the first game of the season, he’s punching the ground; frustration a painting, his face the canvas. Thankfully, though, he’ll be out only four weeks if all goes well.
Panic Level: Your very first car, but now you’ve graduated college and are on your second job, attempting to save money to buy a home. It’s got a quarter million miles on it, will start up on occasion but inevitably breaks back down. It’s crying for help. Every time you get it back from the shop, you have it *just* long enough to think about taking a road trip down the coast to warmer California coastal weather. And then the battery dies. You’ve made so many incredible memories with it, but find yourself thinking “maybe its time for a new ride.”
Osaze De Rosario
Five goals last year for the first team, including in the Leagues Cup Final vs “FC Miami” and Lionel Messi. Preseason looms, the conversation is whether Morris or Musovski will win the starting 9 job. Osaze didn’t care, bagging five goals, showing pressing proficiency, strength and an ability to hold up the ball that only Jordan Morris can match. While he didn’t manage a goal in the first two games, he was extremely effective against Colorado. His previously mentioned pressing ability was on display, and he showed an ability to playmake; dropping into midfield to thread a long throughball to Ferreira to notch a secondary assist. With Morris out for the following weeks, it’ll be up to Osaze to not only score for the team, but to keep Moose at bay.
Panic Level: You’re at the beach with a metal detector. It bleeps a weak signal. You begin digging. Dig some more, then a bit more. Finally, you hit something solid. You drop to your hands and knees, attempting to reveal more and more before your heart skips, realizing whatever treasure beneath is a whole lot bigger than you thought.
Danny Musovski
A quiet preseason for Danny with all the spotlight on Osaze. Some might even be forgiven for forgetting he’s on the roster. I can assure you of one thing, though: Danny Musovski did not forget he is on the roster. Anyway, a dull performance vs the Rapids was to be expected given the game state he entered at, though he did cause some sparks against RSL, scoring a genuinely challenging goal by sailing through the air and stroking a Rothrock cross into the net with the side of his foot… only for it to be ruled off due to Paul being offside. He nearly scored again after holding off Justen Glad, who may have been attempting to ride him like a bull(moose). I think I heard Glad counting the seconds out “one, two, three, four… NEW RECORD!” over the broadcast (I didn’t, but four seconds is an impressive amount of time to ride such a towering creature). A bit of actual defensive pressure also on a few occasions also might have been proof that he’s feeling the pressure from Osaze for minutes and decided some extra effort might be necessitated.
Panic Level: “I DON’T KNOW WHAT WE’RE YELLING ABOUT!” “LOUD NOISES!” Danny yells, desperately attempting to get Brian Schmetzer’s attention while quoting Brick from Anchorman.
