Red Bulls and Crew suffer epic meltdowns

Sweeping up after the MLS weekend party, here are 10 things I found lying around:

1. The hiccups that can cost managerial jobs: No fewer than three teams fumbled late leads at home in Round 6, including reigning champ Columbus, which conceded two strikes in the waning minutes of a hugely disappointing 2-2 draw with Chicago.

A debatable red card for Columbus and a Chicago foul inexplicably ignored by referee Jair Marrufo will have Crew fans in a tizzy. No matter, though. By June, this game will be remembered only as another black mark in a season going sideways in Ohio.

Still, watching 10-man Columbus wilt slowly beneath the pressure and physical toll of playing a man short for more than 30 minutes was nothing like witnessing the high comedy at Giants Stadium, where the Red Bulls' epic collapse was as sudden as it was messy. New York had a 2-1 lead going into the 90th minute and somehow lost 3-2 to D.C. United. Oh, my.

Colorado lost its bid for all three points when the Galaxy's indomitable Landon Donovan tucked in a late equalizer from close range. Bruce Arena's team now has dug out a point in consecutive road matches. Hope prevails at the HDC after all.

2. Above and beyond: The Galaxy have six goals this season. Donovan has scored or assisted on each one. How's that for value?

3. Command performances: Whatever they fed Steve Zakuani before Saturday's match, we'll take two. Seattle's rookie, the league's top overall pick, was a real live wire against San Jose, causing all kinds of trouble along the left and scoring once.

He was one of three rookies to strike in Week 6, as Chris Pontius and Rodney Wallace contributed goals in D.C. United's victory. Crew center back Chad Marshall was a commanding presence in defense and scored for Columbus. He might have been the weekend's top defender, although he did play a part in the late disintegration.

And finally, Real Salt Lake took out five weeks of sloppy finishing frustration in a six-goal, second-half breakout for a 6-0 win against New England. Yura Movsisyan surely would have been heading to the bench soon for his part in the pox, but a goal in RSL's eye-catching outburst (Jason Kreis' team out-shot New England 29-6) could inflate his confidence. It was the sixth time in MLS history a team struck for six in a half.

4. Three big subs: The Red Bulls might stink, but it's not Mac Kandji's fault. His second-half introduction Sunday pepped up a listless attack as his plucky campaign continues. Teammate Jorge Rojas' halftime introduction helped, too, as the playmaker finally made some plays. Chicago reserve winger Mike Banner energized the team's attack and aided its late rally.

5. Will Columbus miss the playoffs? It was simply inconceivable that Columbus would be winless going into May, with an 0-4-2 mark, the East's downtrodden doormat. But even when the Crew were up 2-0 Saturday, you just got the feeling Columbus wasn't yet rid of whatever funk has affixed itself to the champ.

The Crew just don't look sharp or hungry. It's hard to pinpoint, but something is wrong, especially as it comes to pressuring the ball with tenacity and transition from attack to defense. Could it be as simple as missing the fire, desire and leadership of injured Frankie Hejduk?

Four of the Crew's next six games are on the road, so it's not going to get any easier. Two previous champs have failed to make the playoffs the following season: D.C. United in 2000 and Los Angeles in 2006. So it certainly can happen.

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6. Redemption in Chivas-land ... : After a puny season (by his standards) in 2008, Jonathan Bornstein is looking like his old dash-about self, getting up and down the left side from his fullback spot and generally being a nuisance. There's a real opportunity for him, considering he plays what is surely the U.S. national team's weakest spot. You can bet your best pair of soccer shorts that Bob Bradley is watching.

And speaking of a renaissance man, Zach Thornton continues his stunning rebirth. He absolutely robbed FC Dallas with two classy first-half saves (stops out-done this weekend in the "Wow!" factor only by Kasey Keller's wonderful stop on a San Jose header). Based on current form, you'd have to position Thornton ahead of seven or eight other starters in a ranking of MLS goalkeepers.

7. ... and one who is going the wrong way: Chivas sits atop the West, but it's not because of anything special from Sacha Kljestan. His performances are so consistently muted right now that it's hard to imagine this was the guy hitting for a hat trick in the national team shirt earlier this year while speculation roiled of his potential transfer to Celtic.

8. Yet another dandy discovery at Qwest: So much is going right in Seattle that it's hard to keep up. Plenty has been said about Keller, Fredy Montero, Freddie Ljungberg, Osvaldo Alonso and the whole teeming Sounders scene. Slightly obscured has been Seattle's helpful center back discovery, as Jhon Kennedy Hurtado has a really classy look about him. Strong on the ball, composed and smart, he's yet another reason the Sounders are legitimate league contenders.

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What's especially ironic is that Hurtado is standing tall in a year of contagious center back crisis. San Jose, Toronto, Dallas, Houston and New York all have struggled to identify the right pair. New England, D.C. United and Los Angeles came into the season with huge question marks dangling about the position.

9. How's this for a kick in the head? Seattle's Keller had to come to the United States to play in front of really big crowds! OK, that's not exactly true. But he did finish up his days in Europe at Fulham, where cozy little Craven Cottage holds about 25,500. Seattle, meanwhile, just played in front of its fourth consecutive "sellout" crowd of 28,000-plus at Qwest Field.

Currently averaging 29,664 spectators per match, Seattle seems on its way to setting an MLS season attendance record. Wouldn't that just be the cherry on the parfait of a dazzling debut year?

10. A journeyman no more: If MLS created an "Outta Nowhere Award," presented annually to the veteran player who rose from obscurity to join the ranks of respected starters, Chicago right back Tim Ward would be a shoo-in.

He is in his fifth year of pro soccer and already is wearing his fourth MLS uniform. And yet, he might be Chicago's best defender this season, given a couple of uneven outings by Bakary Soumare -- including last weekend's stinker -- and Wilman Conde. Ward is getting forward as well as any right back in MLS, even collecting the critical assist on Saturday's late equalizer.

Steve Davis is a Dallas-based freelance writer who covers MLS for ESPNsoccernet. He can be reached at BigTexSoccer@yahoo.com.