With Season 3 rosters for the Rocket League Championship Series finally locked, it's time to reflect on the lineup moves made in the offseason.
No, the grades on this list aren't necessarily a reflection of how teams will perform (and the four top teams on this list aren't necessarily going to qualify), but it doesn't hurt to try anyway.
Europe
FlipSid3 Tactics
Grade: A
Roster
Francesco "Kuxir97" Cinquemani
Mark "Markydooda" Exton
Marius "Greazymeister" Ranheim
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. That was the motto FlipSid3 seemed to have this offseason. That's not exactly a bad thing when you have the best roster in the world. The defending champions come in with an unchanged roster looking to repeat the success of last season. Their offseason form has been good and they're coming in as possible favorites in Season 3.
Northern Gaming
Grade: B
Roster
Remco "Remkoe" den Boer
David "Deevo" Morrow
Nick "Maestro" Bang
Northern Gaming is an interesting conundrum. The addition of Deevo should be a good thing, but the offseason has not been kind to Northern Gaming. Perhaps it's apathy or vacations keeping them from hosting a full roster in most tournaments, but Northern will need to pick up the pace for RLCS.
Mock-it Esports
Grade: B
Roster
David "miztik" Lawrie
Courant "Kaydop" Alexandre
Victor "Fairy Peak" Locquet
While this roster comes in with the name "Mock-it," it's fully changed from the second-place roster from Season 2. The acquisition of miztik from Northern and Kaydop from Precision Z are solid pick-ups and Fairy Peak is an excellent player despite not being at Season 2 Finals.
Pocket Aces
Grade: C
Roster
Philip "Paschy90" Paschmeyer
Jos "Violent Panda" van Meurs
Thibault "Chausette45" Grzesiak
Pocket Aces retain two out of three of their original roster and look to be in decent shape for Season 3. The only question mark here is Chausette45, who has big shoes to fill replacing Aces' best player. Consistency is the name of the game and if Chausette can keep strong, expect big things from Pocket Aces.
North America
NRG
Grade: B
Roster
Jacob "Jacob" McDowell
Jayson "Fireburner" Nunez
Garrett "Garrettg" Gordon
Two months ago, this could have been a dream North American roster. In the offseason, it has been a bit less than stellar. Still with a talented lineup, NRG are set up to continue their streak of taking the No. 1 seed in North America. The acquisition of Garrettg could be the tipping point to make NRG world contenders in Season 3.
G2 Esports
Grade: B
Roster
Cameron "Kronovi" Bills
Dillon "Rizzo" Rizzo
Jacob "Jknaps" Knapman
G2 lost two of their members from their Season 1 winning side, which was expected after a disappointing Season 2. Picking up Rizzo from Take 3 and Jknaps from Selfless could prove to be the most important moves of the offseason. With Kronovi surrounded by two consistent players, the chance for G2 to challenge the upper echelon seems more likely than ever.
Genesis
Grade: C
Roster
Jason "Klassux" Klass
Trevor "Insolences" Carmody
Robert "Chrome" Gomez
Genesis' new roster features a two-player revamp with Insolences and Chrome joining Klassux, looking to return to the international finals once more. The issues this team faces might come just as much out of game as in-game. With mental tilting potential prevalent in these players, the roster might rely heavily on coach Quinn "Quinn Lobdell" Lobdell to keep things calm and collected when something goes wrong. While the talent might be here for a top spot in North America, it will all come down to whether or not these players can bring in the right mentality on game day.
Take 3
Grade: C
Roster
Christopher "Zanejackey" Jacobs
Vincent "Vince" Viani
Adam "Espeon" Barth.
Zanejackey and manager Chad "Chad" Goff are the only members that Take 3 retains, and that doesn't bode well for North America's best performers at the Season 2 Grand Finals. While Vince and Espeon are excellent players, the absence of Rizzo and Insolences could be extremely rough for Zanejackey. Overall this team should make the Top 8, but there are no guarantees with changes this sweeping. What could elevate this team is Vince, who needs to step up to the very highest level of Rocket League for the first time in his career.