The Atlanta Home Series was nothing short of spectacular for Call of Duty fans. It had everything from ties, several reverse sweeps and plenty of extremely close matches.
The Atlanta FaZe managed to defend its home turf with a 3-0 sweep of surprise finalists, the Florida Mutineers, a team that had managed to come back from a two-game deficit against fan-favourites, the Chicago Huntsmen.
We take a look at five things to takeaway from the event, and what we could expect to see at the Los Angeles Home Series, taking place from March 7th-8th.
1) Atlanta Is The Best Team
Despite sitting in second place in the league table after taking home the championship in its hometown, the FaZe showed some serious composure against a very hot Minnesota RØKKR team that could well have sent them home after going two maps behind.
The ruthless aggression on Atlanta is very strong, often being used to bully their way back into a game with their outright slaying prowess from all five members of the team. McArthur "Cellium" Jovel rightly earned the MVP trophy thanks to his performance. He may not have the best statistics but his ability to fill the gaps proved to be the difference.
We didn't get to see a showdown between Chicago and Atlanta after the Huntsmen fell in the semi-finals, but the anticipation for it could not be higher and the next time we may get a chance to see is at the Chicago Home Series. A very exciting prospect!
2) Major Improvements For Toronto
Most expected the Toronto Ultra to be a walkover heading into the Atlanta Home Series considering its first match would be against the Chicago Huntsmen. The series could not have been closer, going all the way to a fifth map and an eleventh round where Chicago scraped the win.
The second game for the Ultra was against a tough Paris Legion team that secured the win 3-1 but regardless of the result, Toronto looked like a much more polished team after bringing in Ben "Bance" Bance to the team.
As the season progresses, Toronto has a lot of potential to move towards the top half of the table. Currently locked in the mid-table medley, if the Ultra can build from its Atlanta performance, the Ultra have the potential to have a very successful rest of the season.
3) Florida Shock Chicago
If you asked anyone before the event that Chicago would fall short against the Mutineers, they'd probably think you're insane. But at the Atlanta Home Series, Florida came out swinging in a match that pitched Preston "Prestinni" Sanderson against his twin and Huntsmen player Alec "Arcitys" Sanderson.
Although Chicago raced to a 2-0 lead, Florida managed to bounce back in games three and four to force a fifth and final map and it was Prestinni & co that toppled the Huntsmen.
Florida may have been swept aside in the Grand Finals but its run to the final was certainly impressive. The mid-field fight has got even closer.
4) Untapped Potential In London
The London Royal Ravens were looking at another strong showing after placing in the top four in London. Things got off to a great start, defeating Florida with relative ease before a battle against Atlanta to qualify for the bracket. There were points where London looked like it could overcome the hometown team but Atlanta managed to take the series.
London would play the Mutineers again for its second chance at qualifying for the knockout bracket but this time, Florida managed to overcome its opposition to advance to bracket play.
There is so much untapped potential in this London team. Bradley "Wuskin" Marshall is leading the way as the main AR player while the rest of the team are seemingly struggling to find some form of consistency. That will come over time and eventually, London will be contending with the top teams.
5) What Is Happening With OpTic Gaming Los Angeles?
This has to be the biggest mystery of the Call of Duty League so far. With several North American household names on the roster, OpTic Gaming Los Angeles is the only team in the entire league that is yet to score a victory. It's loss against Atlanta came as no real surprise but when Florida managed to take them down and no real signs of improvement being made, what is next for the Green Wall?
Perhaps the time has come for a substitution. Martin "Chino" Chino and Jevon "Goonjar" Gooljar-Lim are both waiting on the bench for a potential call-up to the main team but whether that will rectify the existing problems is another question.
Or is this typical of an Austin "Slasher" Liddicoat team? Last year, he and his 100 Thieves teammates started the season on the back foot and towards the latter half of the season, the team was the best in the game. Do the players attempt to work through the issues currently holding them back, or is it too far gone and a change will happen before the LA Home Series at the beginning of March? We will have to wait and see but one thing is for sure, OpTic LA will score points at its home weekend.
The third event of the CDL is done and dusted! Find out what happened at the event in this article.
