Rogue vs exceL

The last week of regular season play has, at least thus far, been absolute madness. But such a thing was expected, frankly speaking. We have top-tier teams and favorites playing under pressure, and a bunch of bottom-tier dwellers who have nothing left to prove, so they engage and fight without reserve or hesitation. It's quite a fascinating dichotomy, and it is undoubtedly the result of many recent upsets.

Heck, "many recent upsets" feels like an understatement. Everyone's beating everyone, and there's very little rhyme or reason behind what's going on. The playoff picture is still far from set, although three teams are already locked in: G2 Esports, Rogue, and MAD Lions. Still, with three spots left, the region itself is in a pretty precarious position, and there's no telling who'll deliver and who'll implode now that their backs are against the wall.

Still, out of all competing teams, there's one that has been fairly consistent and dominant from start to finish: Rogue. They don't fool around like G2 nor are they out of sync like Fnatic. Instead, they try their hardest regardless of whom they're up against, and watching them perform and grow as a five-man unit has been nothing short of spectacular. They're truly a top-tier challenger and will undoubtedly give G2 Esports a run for their money once the playoffs come around.

Right now, however, they want to secure as high a spot in the standings as possible, so they're definitely going to put their best foot forward and fight like there's no tomorrow. EXCEL Esports are still in the race for playoffs, but the odds of them reaching Top 6 are definitely stacked against them. They're a feisty bunch, and -- depending on the day -- they've been fairly entertaining. Still, once the going got rough, they failed to deliver time and time again. They're too volatile and, at times, one-dimensional. They've shown very little growth throughout the last couple of months and that's a worrying sign (albeit far from an unexpected one). Still, they did just beat Fnatic so it's not like they don't have the tools to throw down and pull off an upset.

Be that as it may, we're going to Rogue on this one. They're better across the board and have done more than enough to warrant our benefit of the doubt. They're exceptional in more ways than one and are basically a shoo-in for the 2021 LEC Spring Split finals. They might not win in particularly dominant fashion, but they should be able to win nonetheless.