There has always been something Jekyll and Hyde about Caleb Porter's Portland Timbers.

In the early years of his tenure, there was a notable contrast between the confidence with which they took leads and how nervously they protected them. Last season, the dichotomy was between home and away: They dominated opponents at Providence Park, yet finished as the only team in the league without a single road win.

So far this year, the divide can be drawn along the midfield stripe.

Portland's attack is as fearsome as any in Major League Soccer and leads the league with 20 goals in 10 games. Defensively, however, it has been shaky. The Timbers have conceded 15 times, more than any Western Conference team occupying a playoff spot.

Just last weekend, they were torn up 3-0 by a San Jose Earthquakes team that doesn't often strike fear in opposing back lines.

The Timbers' attacking front is so good that they are almost assuredly a playoff team despite the defense. But if they want to be considered title contenders on the level of Dallas and Toronto, they must improve on the other end.

It's not as though Porter and the Timbers' front office are unaware of the deficiency. There has been a hole at center-back ever since now-retired Nat Borchers tore his Achilles last July, and it wasn't a position of strength even before his injury.