San Jose continues to show its class

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2012 Power Rankings: August 20
 RK (LW)TEAMRECCOMMENT
San Jose1 (1)San Jose14-6-5The Quakes' dramatic comebacks have hid a dirty little secret: San Jose isn't defending that well. This fact was laid bare in Saturday's 3-1 defeat to Montreal and marked the 19th time in the past 21 matches that the Quakes didn't record a clean sheet.
Houston2 (2)Houston11-6-8Houston looked headed toward its first-ever defeat at BBVA Compass Stadium, but a fortuitous goal from Adam Moffat slipped through the hands of Columbus goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum and allowed the Dynamo to snag a 2-2 draw.
New York Red Bulls3 (3)New York Red Bulls13-7-5The Red Bulls beat Portland in spite of themselves, conceding two preventable goals -- and it could have been more -- before conjuring up an inspired fight back to win 3-2. New York knows it can't defend that poorly and expect to win again.
Kansas City4 (4)Kansas City14-7-4SKC appears to be finding its early-season form, doing the little things needed to grind out wins. In this instance, Kei Kamara's late tally from a free kick gave Kansas City all three points for the third consecutive game.
Chicago5 (5)Chicago12-7-5The newly constructed forward tandem of Chris Rolfe and Sherjill MacDonald appears to be finding some chemistry, as both were on the score sheet in a 2-1 win over New England. Chicago seems a cinch for the postseason.
Seattle Sounders FC6 (8)Seattle Sounders FC11-6-7The Sounders put a difficult last week behind them and rebounded with a 2-0 win over Cascadia rival Vancouver. Fredy Montero again tormented the Whitecaps by grabbing the opener, his fourth in as many games against Vancouver.
Real Salt Lake7 (6)Real Salt Lake13-10-3RSL's match with Dallas marked another occasion when it dominated yet got nothing for its efforts in a 2-1 loss. Manager Jason Kries must be of two minds, hesitant to blast his team while playing well, but clearly concerned about his side's results.
Los Angeles8 (9)Los Angeles11-11-4Minus Landon Donovan and David Beckham, the Galaxy managed to secure a 1-1 road draw in Columbus and climbed above Vancouver into fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
DC United9 (7)DC United11-8-4Ben Olsen will need to conduct a therapy session after Sunday's 1-1 draw with Philly. Dwayne De Rosario's missed PK set about a wild ending that saw three red cards and heated exchanges between DCU teammates.
Montreal Impact10 (12)Montreal Impact11-13-3Arguably the league's hottest team, Montreal secured its fourth win in a row with a 3-1 comeback over San Jose. Felipe Martins continues to thrive and striker Marco di Vaio looks to be finding his feet with the Impact.
Columbus11 (11)Columbus8-8-6With the Crew's grief over the death of midfielder Kirk Urso still palpable, Columbus returned to the field and secured two draws against Los Angeles and Houston. The performances of Cole Grossman and newcomer Federico Higuain are encouraging signs.
Vancouver Whitecaps12 (10)Vancouver Whitecaps10-9-7Manager Martin Rennie insists he's not worried, but two losses in the past week -- and three defeats in four matches overall -- have left the Whitecaps' hold on the final playoff spot looking more tenuous.
Philadelphia Union13 (13)Philadelphia Union7-12-3The Union got out of jail thanks to De Rosario's aforementioned missed penalty. Referee Mark Geiger also appeared to waive off what looked to be a perfectly legit equalizer from Nick DeLeon. All told, manager John Hackworth will take it.
FC Dallas14 (16)FC Dallas8-11-8FCD is creeping back into the playoff conversation after securing road wins at Vancouver and Real Salt Lake. David Ferreira is reprising his MVP form of 2010, and Kevin Hartman has been immense in Dallas' goal.
Chivas USA15 (14)Chivas USA7-9-6A 1-1 road draw in Colorado should be reason to celebrate. But the Goats need wins and have now been passed by Dallas in the standings. Pretty soon, the only race left for Chivas will be trying to avoid having the worst offense in league history.
Toronto FC16 (15)Toronto FC5-14-5Late goals plagued Toronto again, first in a midweek tie against Portland, then during Saturday's loss to Kansas City. But if league debuts are anything to go by, the play of Darren O'Dea is just what TFC's beleaguered back line needs.
Colorado17 (18)Colorado8-15-2It was another week when the Rapids failed to find any semblance of killer instinct. Colorado was unable to add to its 1-0 lead over Chivas USA, then watched Juan Pablo Angel put away a late equalizer.
Portland Timbers18 (19)Portland Timbers5-13-6The honeymoon period for interim head coach Gavin Wilkinson has clearly ended with fans directing plenty of venom his way. After a midweek tie against Toronto, a teeth-gnashing, 3-2 loss to New York makes it unlikely there will be any letup.
New England19 (17)New England6-13-5The goal the Revs conceded straight from a throw-in against Chicago is Exhibit A as to why New England is sinking like a stone in the Eastern Conference. Expect big changes in the back during the offseason.