Overwatch League power rankings: Here’s a way-too-early look at OWL rosters going into 2021

The year is coming to a close and regardless of when it happens, a new Overwatch League season will arrive with 2021. The offseason was a dramatic onslaught of blockbuster moves, surprising pickups and great teams now looking even more dangerous.

The Dallas Fuel all but hit a complete reset button. The San Francisco Shock added more superstars. Familiar faces to the Fuel fandom moved to different spots and some teams don’t even have a complete roster.

Still, it’s time for a closer look at what could happen in the fourth season of OWL although it’s premature to make a judgment call on a lot of teams. Still, I made a way-too-early power ranking, or maybe “tier list” is a better descriptor since I don’t rank every single team. Not all of them are complete, so it’d be impossible to place those teams. For example, the London Spitfire have only one player.

Here’s a look at OWL teams and where they stand at the end of 2020.

Top of the table

No. 1: San Francisco Shock

Had to start off bold. The two-time defending world champions may have gotten even better. The Shock did lose Grant “Moth” Espe to the Los Angeles Gladiators but gained Brice “FDGod” Monsçavoir, Charlie “nero” Zwarg and Lim “Glister” Gil-seong. San Francisco would’ve been elite without those acquisitions, but it went and improved its depth anyway.

No. 2: Philadelphia Fusion

The Fusion made a coaching swap, assigning Kim “NineK” Bumhoon from the Paris Eternal as the new head coach. Fuel damage player Jung “Xzi” Ki-hyo praised this move by Philadelphia, as he felt NineK could help develop a damage superstar like Lee “Carpe” Jae-hyeok into an even better player.

No. 3: Seoul Dynasty

Maybe Seoul was peaking at the right time in the 2020 playoffs before falling to the Shock in the championship match. But the Dynasty added Park “Saebyeolbe” Jong-ryeol and Jung “Anamo” Taesung while maintaining Hong “Gesture” Jae-hee and Park “Profit” Joon-yeong.

No. 4: Shanghai Dragons

The Dragons should still be a great team despite losing Lee “Fearless” Eui-Seok to the Dallas Fuel. How the Dragons respond to their main tank leaving will be important, but Shanghai maintained its core and that should be plenty for a crack at a top-five finish.

No. 5: Dallas Fuel

Whoa, how did we get here? If you completely missed the offseason, the Fuel dropped every player except Kim “DoHa” Dongha and reunited him with his friends and coaches from Element Mystic, mainly the Paris Eternal core. They all know and like each other. Read about that here.

The Eternal had the fourth-best record in the league last year at 18-6. Placing the Fuel fifth feels safe, but they could also climb.

Upper-middle tier

In no particular order, here are some teams that will be interesting to watch and could make a run toward the top of the upper half of the standings.

Washington Justice

Well, Jang “Decay” Gui-un sure looked scary in the OWL playoffs. The former Fuel damage star turned a great meta for Justice into a deep playoff run that gave scares to the San Franciscos of the league. Was that just a great meta for the Justice, or can a couple of new additions help Decay make Washington a contender?

Los Angeles Gladiators

They added Moth, and that’s enough to think the culture and leadership on the team improved. A couple of other additions could make the Gladiators a quality team, though they have a past of playing up or down to their competition.

New York Excelsior

The Excelsior almost made a complete flip with their core, but they still have big-name support player Bang “JJoNak” Seonghyun. New York is giving a group of damage players from Contenders a chance at OWL life, paired with proven ex-Fusion star Lee “Ivy” Seung-hyun.

Florida Mayhem

Losing five players, including Koo “Fate” Pan-seung to Shanghai, turned the Mayhem into a bit of a rebuild project. But Florida made quality pickups like Son “OGE” Minseok (formerly of the Fuel) and Kim “SLIME” Sungjun that make them a team to watch.

Toronto Defiant

Another serious rebuild. The Defiant added five Korean players, including Jeong “Heesu” Heesu and Kim “SADO” Sumin, giving them a great starting block. Andreas “Logix” Berghmans is a quality DPS player, too.

Los Angeles Valiant

The Valiant overachieved in 2020 and still lost a lot of parts. Brady “Agilities” Girardi joining the Valiant gave them some star power at DPS, but there are still some young players on this team who could make them a nuisance for other teams trying to find the top 10.

Hangzhou Spark

There’s a little hype around the Spark considering the team has 11 players, and depth could make any OWL team good if those players have chemistry and fill in the gaps with hero pools. Hangzhou could make some noise if its pickups become quality pro players.

Guangzhou Charge

This team has four new players and a completely new coaching staff. That alone could pique interest over in the Asia region considering the Charge found moderate success in 2020, winning Summer Showdown and finishing with the fifth-best record in OWL (18-7).

Atlanta Reign

Having just two support and two tank players could make flexibility tricky, but the Reign still have the talent to be a mid-tier squad. There are quality players on this team, but competition could be stiff in the North America region as a lot of teams got better.

Lower-tier teams

Vancouver Titans

It’s hard to blame the Titans’ core from last year because the team was put together briskly after losing its entire roster in the middle of the season. Still, the Titans have six players and lost Niclas “sHockWave” Jensen to the Fusion. Is adding Jiri “LiNkzr” Masalin enough?

Houston Outlaws

The Outlaws did make some cool pickups, including former Fuel support all-star William “Crimzo” Hernandez, but this core still has a lot to prove if it wants to squeak into the top 10.

Paris Eternal

The Eternal lost their entire team and coaching staff and that’s enough to cause concern. One of the new additions was Stefan “Onigod” Fiskerstrand, who showed promise during his stint with the Fuel despite playing from Norway on high ping. Paris could struggle but is still a team to keep an eye on.

Chengdu Hunters

It’s not that Chengdu can’t be a good team, but the APAC region got a lot better this offseason. The Fusion will play in Asia, and Shanghai, Seoul, New York and Hangzhou could all be top talent. This is a tough spot for the Hunters.

Incomplete teams

Boston Uprising

The Uprising had departing players and new additions, but still have only one support player. So ranking them without a complete roster isn’t fair. The Uprising have a lot of work to do to make up for a 2-19 season.

London Spitfire

The Spitfire have only one player on the roster.

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