June 26, 2025
By Daniel Cohen
With just four more regular season weekends, the playoff race is peaking as teams continue jockeying for position in their respective divisions. Some of the biggest individual performances come out when the stakes are at their highest, so keep a close eye on these seven players as each face playoff-caliber competition in Week 10.
Travis Dunn, San Diego Growlers
As consistent as they come, Travis Dunn is up over 50 scores on the year for the ninth consecutive season dating back to 2016. The 34-year-old veteran is simply inevitable as an offensive workhorse, downfield hybrid, and stat-sheet stuffer, and he could be leaned on even more than usual this week without Khalif El-Salaam and KJ Koo in the lineup. With 13 assists and over 1,300 yards combined in his last three games, Dunn looks as comfortable as ever in the 2025 Growlers offense; this San Diego O-line is currently converting at their best rate since 2019. The Growlers have their first of two meetings with Oakland this Saturday and they’re very much in control of their playoff destiny, but they’ll likely need a big offensive showing from Dunn to keep pace with the second best offense in the league.
Leo Gordon, Oakland Spiders
Leo Gordon and the Spiders will have another shot at the first place Shred tomorrow night in Utah. The midseason pick for Rookie of the Year had arguably his best game of the season in Oakland’s Week 7 overtime loss to Salt Lake, as he set new season highs in assists (6), blocks (2), and completions (49) while committing a single turnover. He’s been a critical piece of one of the league’s best offenses as a primary distributor, and he plays with the type of creativity, pace, and decisiveness that has shaped Oakland’s identity over the past couple seasons. It’s clear that this team has all the confidence in the world in Gordon—he leads the team in points played per game, averaging 23.5—and given his effectiveness against Salt Lake in their first meeting, expect them to lean on him once again as Oakland looks to take back the top spot in the West.
Kyle Henke, Austin Sol
This Austin Sol offense has been driven by Kyle Henke and Jackson Potts this season, but the team could be without the latter on this week’s road trip to Atlanta and Carolina, as Potts is currently listed as “Dressed” (as of Thursday morning). If he’s unable to go, expect the offense to run through Henke this weekend in his role as Austin’s primary hybrid thrower; Henke leads the team in total yards this season and the team scores on 57.4 percent of their possessions when he’s on the field, up 2.6 percent from their O-line conversion rate of 54.8. He played well last season in Austin’s Atlanta–Carolina road trip despite the two Sol losses, as he racked up nearly 1,000 total yards with eight scores and just one turnover in the two contests. Interestingly, Henke had his lowest touch count of the season last game with just 20 against Houston, so it’ll be worth watching how his usage evolves with Austin’s new additions like the Armstrong brothers continuing to carve out more significant roles.
Brett Hulsmeyer, Atlanta Hustle (Pictured)
Brett Hulsmeyer has flown a bit under-the-radar this season with the year Austin Taylor’s been having alongside Hayden Austin-Knab and Adam Miller, but having this loaded Hustle offense has allowed the team to move Hulsmeyer around more freely between offense and defense. His D-line usage has more than doubled this season compared to last—he leads the team in points played with 168 O-points and 57 D-points—which has been great for generating takeaways (he’s averaging right around a block per game) as well as punching in transition scores. Quietly, Hulsmeyer is about to set a single-season career high in assists, and his dominance as a downfield receiver continues to be on display every game; he ranks top 10 in the league in receiving yards and is on pace for his third straight 3,000-yard season. He scored four goals against Austin in each of two meetings last year and should see plenty of opportunities on both sides of the disc this week.
Allan Laviolette, Carolina Flyers
Back in the lineup after missing his first game of the season last week, midseason MVP Allan Laviolette could be in for a bigger workload than usual without offensive co-star Rutledge Smith in the lineup this week against Austin. On a per-game basis, Laviolette leads the league in assists (6.1) and scores (8.0), while ranking top 10 in total yards (532) and huck completions (2.9) through the first nine weeks of the season. He’s been one of the league’s most valuable offensive weapons and has showcased an unstoppable arsenal of throws all year, with the consistent ability to put the disc wherever it needs to go from anywhere on the field. Last year against Austin, Laviolette had his best game of the season with four goals, four assists, and a block on a perfect 26-of-26, 515-yard day. Expect an encore this Saturday as the Flyers look to take down the first place Sol.
Andrew Roy, DC Breeze
With Jacques Nissen out for tomorrow’s matchup against Montreal, Andrew Roy should take on the unquestioned QB1 role for the DC offense. In DC’s last game against New York, Roy handled a career-high 89 touches while Nissen had 77, and no other Breeze player had more than 36. They’ve had a pretty clear two-QB system when Nissen and Roy have both been active but the offense will have a slightly different look to it this week, as they’re also adding back in Christian Boxley. Roy struggled in DC’s Week 6 loss to the Royal, recording three throwaways in a game for just the second time since the start of 2023, and the entire Breeze offense was out of rhythm all game; they converted just 13-of-31 (42 percent) of their offensive possessions. However, the offense is now coming off back-to-back games converting over 70 percent and they’re back at home, so if Roy can successfully lead the backfield solo, they’ll have a great opportunity to spark some late-season momentum.
Chad Yorgason, Salt Lake Shred
In Salt Lake’s first meeting against Oakland, the Spiders simply had no answer for Chad Yorgason. Chad set single-game career highs with 11 scores (goals plus assists), 37 completions, 792 total yards, and 35 points played in the Shred’s overtime victory, continually burning defenders deep or airing out hucks as a one-man explosive play factory. His speed and athleticism paired with his aggressiveness and range as a thrower make him one of the tougher matchups in the division, and it’ll be interesting to see if Oakland takes any significant steps (more double teaming or constant help over the top?) to limit his impact in their second meeting. For the first time this season, all three Yorgason brothers will be active tomorrow night, so you can expect to see some sort of supercharged sibling power up (maybe a cosmic flash of light anytime they connect on scores) as the three unite in the battle for first place.
Previous lists:
