This squad spent most of last year under-performing the talent on the roster. Finishing in the box was an obvious hole from the lack of a striker. But the bigger issue, IMHO, was mental toughness. They folded too easily and went through half-hearted motions after tough breaks.

The PK against DC was a tough break. It was definitely a foul and even though it didn't prevent any kind of scoring chance it earned a PK because it was in the box. But to that point RSL was doing well enough with possession and really were in the game as much as DC were. Instead the defense got lazy (we've seen this film before) and gave away an easy goal to dig a deeper hole. Even worse, we get the red to go down a man and I didn't see a lick of fight in RSL from that point forward.

I believe this roster has talent to be a top team in the league. But we are soft and fold too quickly. I still think we lack a tactical identity but have had a better sense of purpose in recent matches (even going into late last season). I don't think I am ready to put it on Petke but I do task him with figuring it out (as much as a fan can task a coach with something). RSL needs to be better and can be much better. But something is missing in how they prepare and play.