It’s an MLS tradition. Every year, at the SuperDraft, the league lines up all of its head coaches for a class picture. There they stand, eyes full of hope, team scarves draped over their shoulders. There’s optimism in the air. In just a few weeks, they’ll find out whether their respective sides will be any good or not.



Before this year’s SuperDraft in Chicago, Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin found himself taking stock of the group. There were a lot of new faces, and a few familiar ones. Caleb Porter was back with a new scarf, one sporting the black-and-gold checkerboard of the Columbus Crew, his new employer. “Just make the picture,” Porter said through his teeth as the photo was snapped. “Every year, guys. Just… make the picture.”



As the third-longest tenured coach in MLS, Curtin has made the picture five years running. In that time, 47 current and former head coaches have come or gone. In a league...