Signal Intel: Union in evaluation mode as Fire sweat postseason seeding

Hot Time: Is 'freedom' really just another word for 'nothing left to lose?' Because if so, Jim Curtin has tremendous freedom to shake up his preferred XI Sunday against the Fire - do you anticipate him doing so? And what do you think Earnie Stewart and Curtin will be looking for in the two dead-rubber matches to come?

The Brotherly Game: That's what Janis Joplin said, and it does ring true in most cases. I don't know how free Curtin is to experiment though, as he'll most likely be evaluating guys for 2018 over the next two games. He's also got to balance that with renewal clauses in contracts may trigger after a certain number or percentage of games, and that you may not necessarily want to…