Let me start this off by saying this isn’t a panic story. If you've read any of my stories over the past months, I’m literally a patron saint of patience and understanding. But where early missteps by Orlando City can be forgiven over a long season, the same can’t necessarily be said about the Pride.
The NWSL has never been big. Ten teams (nine this year), four make the playoffs. With the Boston Breakers folding, causing valuable talents to move on in the Dispersal Draft, things are even tougher. When talents like Megan Oyster, first-round pick Savannah McCaskill, and superstar-in-the-making Rose Lavelle getting added to teams in an already small league, the road to the playoffs becomes much more difficult.