Timbers to Sign Free Agent Chance Myers

Chance Myers has scored against (and for) the Portland Timbers. And now he’ going to be a Timber.

On Saturday, The Oregonian’s Jamie Goldberg confirmed earlier rumors that the Timbers have signed Myers as a free agent.

Myers, 29, was a mainstay for Sporting KC during their best stretch of form from 2011 to 2013, becoming one of the better right backs in MLS. Since suffering an achilles injury early in 2014, however, Myers has struggled to regain consistent starts as a result of competition with Saad Abdul-Salaam and nagging injury issues.

When healthy, however, Myers has been a consistent force in the attack from the fullback position, registering 14 assists in 88 appearances since 2012. Coincidentally, Myers’s two career MLS goals came in the same game in 2013, a 3-2 loss to the Portland Timbers.

Taken by the Kansas City Wizards with the first pick in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft out of UCLA, Myers spent time in the U.S. youth international setup and was called into January camp with the full U.S. Men’s National Team in 2014 before suffering his achilles injury to start the MLS season.

Notwithstanding injury concerns, however, the Timbers’ signing of Myers is a warning to Alvas Powell that his position at right back may not be secure. If Myers can come into camp healthy and integrate into the Timbers’ setup, the former Bruin could be poised to challenge Powell’s hold on the starting right-back spot.

Creating competition within the roster has been a priority for the Timbers throughout the offseason, and the signing of Myers is just another step for the Timbers in creating the type of internal competition that Timbers brass have called for since the disappointing end of the 2016 season.

Moreover, Myers’s signing creates some uncertainty about the ongoing viability of Zarek Valentin on the Timbers’ roster and further calls into question the return of Taylor Peay, both of whom would figure to be buried on the depth chart at their best position.