The Other Guys 2025: A gameday roster of players outside the PLL Top 50

The PLL has released the entirety of the annual Top 50. Voted on by the players only, it ranks the top 50 players in the sport. It’s always an interesting list, because of it gives fans a glimpse into the how the players see their peers. Unlike postseason awards, this is ONLY picked by PLL pros; there are no votes from media, coaches, anyone else. You’ll have instances where a player who is voted attackman of the year finishes behind other attackman, things like that. 

My favorite thing to do with it is make the Not Top 50. I built a full 19 man gameday roster composed entirely of PLL pros who finished outside the top 50. Positions matter, roster make up matters, and you have to have a plan on putting this team on the field this weekend and having a chance to win. It’s a fun way to show just how much depth there is the league, while acknowledging some of the players who were left just outside the list. 

Here’s this year’s Other Guys:

ATTACK

Asher Nolting, Cannons

Sam King, Archers

Mac O’Keefe, Archers

Ryder Garnsey, Redwoods

The league leader in assists. The 6th highest scoring player in the PLL. Twice a finalist for MVP and Attackman of the Year. Asher Nolting being outside the top 50 will surely be the name that gets discussed the loudest. Nolting had a bit of a slow start to the season, but he had at least four points in each of the last five games of the year. He still demands a matchup that can handle elite levels of physicality and vision. Sam King,  you may be surprised to learn, had more points than Xander Dickson last year. King’s versatility and intelligence meant he walked onto a PLL field ready to contribute in a myriad of ways. He was effective coming out of the box, he’s a good enough dodger to give PLL shorties trouble. His heads up style and experience as a distributor meant he was a threat to feed at all times. He is one of just 11 players to put up double digit assists last summer. There’s a player wight 22 points last year, 14 goals and eight assists, who shot 29%, took care of the ball, and had 22 GBs as an attackman to boot. I bet you think that guy is a Top 50ish level player just based on stats, after all he’s just a point behind Costabile, same production as Jared Bernhardt, all that. I’d agree on that player, Ryder Garnsey. He definitely leads the league in forcing those “no, no, no, YES” moments from his sideline, which I think has led to some fans considering him more prone to turnovers and limited production than is actually the case. He scores a ton, sometimes dramatically, sometimes run of the mill, but he scores a ton. Finally, I’m grabbing Mac O’Keefe. No other way to slice it, this was his worst year as a pro outdoors. He started the season 0-8 shooting over two games, he didn’t hit a two pointer until the season finale against Carolina. He shot just 21%, well below his career career average which was up around 30% before this year dropped it. But O’Keefe did set a career high in shots on goal percentage. He also set a career high in assists. O'Keefe can absolutely sling it and is one of the league’s best shooters, who turned in what I’d consider an outlier of a season. 

MIDFIELD

Ryan Drenner, Cannons

Matt Brandau, Whipsnakes

Matt Traynor, Atlas

Connor Kelly, Waterdogs

Dalton Young, Outlaws

Ben Ramsey, Cannons

Zach Geddes, Chaos

The list of 20 point midfielders in the PLL is very short; there are only eight in the league. Five of them are in the top 50, the other three are here. Matt Brandau had a 25 point season, more than Andrew McAdorey or Bryan Costabile, and led the PLL in total goals by a midfielder. His fit with the Whipsnakes, given the position change, was extraordinary this year and he hasn’t received enough recognition for the year he had. Matt Traynor showed off a level of skill and speed as a dodger that will have him in the top 50 in no time. Dare I say if he played on a different team he’d already be there. It’s easier to get lost in the shuffle when the other guys on the offense with you are Teat, Shellenberger, Dickson, Costabile, etc. Traynor is, in my mind, the player who can make the most significant leap up the list heading into next year. Connor Kelly slid off the list this year, and in all fairness he did have the worst shooting season of his career. He had three two pointers, but he shot just 16% on the season, well below his career average. Still, Kelly is worth a pole as a dodger, demands immediate close out from range, and is still one of the most feared shooters from range in the league. Dalton Young showed this year that he’s a tremendous complimentary piece of an offense. While Denver was stacked with Tewaaraton winners, Young did the dirty work. Setting picks, finding space inside, running the two man game, he can have an impact everywhere. Ryan Drenner is as steady and reliable a midfielder as there is in the league. He is the ultimate “play to the back of his baseball card” player. He goes out there, gets 2-3 points per game, shoots for a high percentage, and makes all the right plays. He does everything so well, and he’s done it for so long, we probably take for granted just how steady and reliable his excellence is. For SSDMs, have to start with Zach Geddes, a finalist for SSDM of the Year this year. His athleticism is off the charts, with blazing end to end speed. He also defended very well this year, including in the invert and in all the other places where SSDMs are dragged so they’re uncomfortable. I would bet he makes the top 50 next year, as does my other SSDM pick, Ben Ramsey. The rookie had a first round draft grade and slipped all the way to round four. The Cannons, who had a need at the position, scooped him up and said thank you. He impressed all year. He had more GBs that Jared Conners, more points than Brian Tevlin, and as many CTs as Colin Squires and Zach Currier. He is a star. 

Defense/LSM

Ben Randall, Waterdogs

Kenny Brower, Waterdogs

Garrett Epple, Cannons

Ethan Rall, Cannons

Owen Grant, Cannons

As often as I loudly loathe the practice of just sorting by caused turnovers to find good defensemen, in this case it can’t be ignored. Ben Randall and Ethan Rall finished tied for 3rd in the league in the stat, just one behind Graeme Hossack and one ahead of DPOY Gavin Adler. Rall has never finished outside the Top 10 in the league in stat. Rall is often at the center of great plays being made off the ground and between the lines, it’s surprising to see him left out. Randall, like his teammate Kenny Brower, is more understandable because they don’t necessarily pile up stats or highlights. They just lock people up. I have repeated it a few times but it really is all you need to know to understand that Brower deserves some attention here. In a single weekend, the Waterdogs home weekend, Brower’s matchups were Marcus Holman and Brennan O’Neill. He held them to a combined two goals and one assist on 14 shots and 81 touches. Owen Grant delivered on the 1st round draft promise this year with Boston after struggling to stay healthy and get on the field for the Redwoods. The man they call OG primarily played LSM, finishing with five points on the season. The LSM position at the pro level demands more physicality, athleticism, and skill every summer, but the Cannons are set for a while with Grant. Finally, even though this season wasn’t his best by the standard we’re used to, if a former DPOY is available it’s a no brainer. Garrett Epple is still one of the top cover man in the PLL. In fact, 2025 was the first year since the PLL launch that Epple wasn’t at least a finalist for DPOY. 

Faceoff

Justin Inacio, Chaos

The league leader in faceoff percentage finished outside the Top 50. Inacio, who definitely was not a mid season addition last year, got his opportunity to be the top faceoff man for Carolina this year and ran with it. He went over 50% against Joe Nardella, TD Ierlan, Alec Stathakis, and Luke Wierman this year. In fact, he didn’t log a single game under 50%. Inacio has been a force indoors, and was once on the Archers but got limited opportunities there. He firmly has a hold of a full time PLL job now. 

GOALIE

Emmet Carroll, Whipsnakes

Colin Kirst, Cannons

Emmet Carroll took over in net for the Whipsnakes after three games. His first start was a little bumpy, giving up 16 goals. His next start saw him give up just six and post a 74% save percentage. He didn’t go below 50% for the rest of the year. In fact, he had more games over 60% this year than games in the 50s or below. He even avenged that bad first game against the Waterdogs with a rematch a month later, giving up just seven goals and going 63%. Colin Kirst was more up and down than he’s been in the past, but still posted a 50% season. He played the Atlas twice, once going 57% and once 43%. He played the Waterdogs twice, 46% the first time and 66% the second time. Another sizable split in two games against the Whips. I’d still take Kirst in a big game or a big spot any day of the week. 

Even with these squad being loaded, there are guys I STILL want to add to this 19 man. Jarrod Neumann should be in here, Logan Wisnauskas, Dyson Williams, Piper Bond, Adam Poitras, and as I say every year, Tim Muller. It’s a laundry list of high end talent that I still haven’t gotten to yet. Maybe next year.