The Overwatch League teams in week three looked to overcome 0-3 losses and make things interesting. Here’s what you need to know.
We're getting ever-closer to the knockouts stage of the Spring Qualifier. And with it comes a reveal of which teams know who they are and which ones... uh.... don't. This third week of play in regular season Overwatch League saw a number of teams used to losing 0-3 come out swinging. Almost-upsets, strange substitutions, and signs of giving up are all part of this week's Monday Payload.
Let's look at the three big things for the weekend that was.
Overwatch League: 0-3, oh my
You can only be a punching bag for so long. We mentioned a few weeks ago that the regular season was seeing a larger-than-usual amount of Overwatch League 0-3 matches. Whether it was the result of the top teams being especially good or the bottom teams being incredibly bad is yet to be fully seen. However, it appears that a number of those losing squads decided that enough was enough. Not only did a number of matches that, on paper could have been a winless affair, but some of those teams almost pulled out upsets.
The NYXL, LA Valiant, and and Vegas Eternal did their best to combat winningless reputations. In the process we also got some fantastic Overwatch League matches that didn't end in an 0-3. Notably, Vegas avoided a forfeit after one of its players lost internet, subbing in its General Manager to play support.
And you know what? They looked better than they had all year. Likewise, the NYXL shuffled players around to place its best talent on the board. Known typically as a DPS player, Kim "FITS" Dong-eun swapped to support and provided some much-needed flexibility as Ana.
The LA Valiant also got in on the action, taking the Florida Mayhem to their limit. Plenty of questions still remain for the bottom fourth of the Overwatch League standings. Why is the NYXL moving a starting DPS to support when the team has four healers signed to the roster? Shouldn't the Paris Eternal have more than five players on its squad?
Questions for another day. For now, it's nice to see that the teams used to being 0-3'ed are still putting up a fight.
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What's wrong with the Shock and Dragons?
If you had told me at the end of last season that the San Francisco Shock and Shanghai Dragons would be a combined 3-6 I'd be, uh, shocked. Pun intended. These former championship franchises are stumbling out of the gate in 2023, with a combined map differential of -12.
This is even more shocking in the case of the Dragons. Sporting an all-star roster on paper, Shanghai simply looks dead against a small and talented East Division. While the Dallas Fuel also look particularly putrid it feels impossible that the Dragons are also playing poorly given the talent involved.
Perhaps it's still just early season jitters, but the Overwatch League commentary desk doesn't seem to think so. Former coach and player Jake Lyon went as far as calling the Shock bad, which feels correct. Though San Fran sits at 2-2 it came within moments of losing to a team in the NYXL made up of castaways and Contenders players.
Maybe the 0-3 Overwatch League teams were just tired of it? Either way, it made for better matches.
Shanghai will have to prove its up to the task in week four, as it enters knockouts play. It will be one of two non-Contenders team in the opening round, potentially facing removal from the Spring Qualifier. Is it up to the task of surviving or are we looking at a Trick Room vs Shock situation? Stay tuned.
The art of fair play
It's a small thing, but I'm thrilled to see how even most of the teams seem to be this season. While the worst teams are particularly bad, it appears the top of the standings remain evenly matched. Houston, Florida, Washington, Boston, and Atlanta are all strong teams that balance off one another in a way that makes for entertaining match-ups.
After all, 0-3 matches in Overwatch League are only fun if it's your team doing the beatdown.
And even the middle of the pack feels like we're just waiting for someone to step up. Vancouver, the Gladiators, and even the maligned Shock could all be looking at knockout round runs if things turn around. All of that is good for the league and great for fans. More so than any season before, it feels like 2023 could be anyone's ballgame.
Stay tuned to esports.gg for esports news and Overwatch League updates.
