Based on some chatter in the MLS thread, there seems to be interest in a dedicated Revs thread. It's the hometown team for this Boston-based baseball message board, so here goes.
Despite being a huge MLS guy, I have a long track record of being fairly negative about the Revs so if somebody else would like to paint things in a more positive light I'd welcome the effort.
History
It's an overstatement to say that the Revs have an illustrious history within the realm of Major League Soccer, but there have been good times. The early Revs teams of the late 90s regularly sucked, but enjoyed the largest fan support in the whole league.
In the early-to-mid '00s, the Revs went on a fantastic spree of talent accumulation. At a time when most imports were meager journeymen from Europe and South America and almost all American talent came through college, that meant making smart moves on the trade market and in the draft. The Revs picked up Jay Heaps (2001) and Matt Reis (2003) in trades, Steve Ralston (2002) in the contraction draft, and went on an epic draft run with Taylor Twellman (2002), Shalrie Joseph (2002), Pat Noonan (2003), Clint Dempsey (2004), Andy Dorman (2004), Michael Parkhurst (2005), James Riley (2005), Jeff Larentowicz (2005).
They made it to MLS Cup in 2002, then again for three straight years from 2005-2007 on the backs of their talent acquisition, falling short each time. Clint Dempsey left after 2006 and was never really replaced. Twellman's career effectively ended prematurely in the 2008 season when he was accidentally punched in the head while challenging for a header by LA Galaxy keeper Steve Cronin. Joseph's massive midfield presence declined by the early 2010s as he aged. The quality of drafting fell off sharply after 2005 and due to a non-existent scouting department, it was a struggle to bring in quality from abroad.
After some down years, the Revs reached and lost in an MLS Cup for a fifth time in 2014, thanks in large part to the acquisition of Jermaine Jones and Lee Nguyen's near-MVP level performance. However, the form and results of the second half of the 2014 season couldn't be replicated and the Revs have been steadily slipping down the table over the past four seasons. This season, most pundits have NE near the bottom of the East and early results suggest they could be right.
The Revs have had remarkable managerial stability, with only six full-time managers in history, and only three since Steve Nicol was hired in 2002. In part that's because long-time GM Mike Burns gives everyone a notoriously long leash. Nicol (2002-2011) and Heaps (2011-2017) were able to live off of MLS Cup appearances for several years after the team had gone into decline. Brad Friedel (2018-present) is unproven and has been largely unimpressive both in developing an identity and in bringing in talent. To be honest, I don't think the Revs have ever had a particularly skilled manager - even Nicol was more of a man-manager who basically just put talent on the field and got out of their way. There's never seemed to be much interest in him after his tenure ended with the Revs, even though he was only 50 at the time.
The Revs did finally get some real silverware in 2007 when they won the US Open Cup, which remains the only trophy in their history. (No, I don't count conference titles or SuperLiga...) The Revs also reached USOC finals in 2001 and 2016, giving them a 1-7 record in finals overall.
The "State of the Club"
NE has been considered a laggard club within the context of MLS for a long time. The GM and manager are rarely held accountable, and the tiny scouting department - usually among the most minimal in the league - has made it a struggle for the Revs to keep pace with ambitious and heavy-spending competitors. IMO, the Revs have never really adapted to the transition away from the draft as the major source of talent acquisition.
Off the field, playing on a turf field in a giant football stadium very from the city has been a real impediment to building a larger fan culture. The lack of interest shown by the Krafts is palpable and has manifested itself in a weaker on-field product, a lack of buzz around the team, and generally low morale among the fanbase. Boston remains a bastion of "Euro-snobbery" among its soccer fans, but I believe a big factor in that is that the Revs have remained such a niche presence in the Boston sports scene. It is difficult to edge into a market with four old and popular major league sports franchises, but surely a lot more can be done.
2019
It's shaping up to be a long year. The Revs just don't have much high-end talent. They have a collection of mediocre GKs and defenders, none of whom really stand out as above-average talent in the league. CB Michael Mancienne is one of the most expensive defenders in the league, but has done little to live up to the size of his contract. One potential high point is recent DP signing Carles Gil, a Spaniard who has shown some quality so far. However, he's supported on the field by middling DMs like Scott Caldwell, Wilfried Zahibo, and Luis Caicedo. Up front, we have perennial disappointment Juan Agudelo and perennial mediocrity Teal Bunbury, as well as an as-yet-unknown quantity in Juan Fernando Caicedo. Longtime local academy product Diego Fagundez is a solid player, but plateaued long ago. Ecuadorian winger Cristian Penilla was good in 2018, but thus far seems to have taken a step back in 2019.
A few small bright spots: there's some interesting young talent on the team. Justin Rennicks is a former academy forward from Hamilton, MA who signed this winter. He's shown some promise with the U20s. The Revs also signed a pair of wingers from the draft: DeJuan Jones and Canadian Tajon Buchanan. CM Isaac Angking is another academy product on the team, from Providence, as is Somerville attacking midfielder Nicolas Firmino.
The Revs managed a draw on the road in Dallas to open the season, but have dropped their next three games, including home games against Columbus and expansion FC Cincinnati. The Revs host four of their next five games; failure to rack up at least a few wins will put them in a very poor position even at this early stage.
Despite being a huge MLS guy, I have a long track record of being fairly negative about the Revs so if somebody else would like to paint things in a more positive light I'd welcome the effort.
History
It's an overstatement to say that the Revs have an illustrious history within the realm of Major League Soccer, but there have been good times. The early Revs teams of the late 90s regularly sucked, but enjoyed the largest fan support in the whole league.
In the early-to-mid '00s, the Revs went on a fantastic spree of talent accumulation. At a time when most imports were meager journeymen from Europe and South America and almost all American talent came through college, that meant making smart moves on the trade market and in the draft. The Revs picked up Jay Heaps (2001) and Matt Reis (2003) in trades, Steve Ralston (2002) in the contraction draft, and went on an epic draft run with Taylor Twellman (2002), Shalrie Joseph (2002), Pat Noonan (2003), Clint Dempsey (2004), Andy Dorman (2004), Michael Parkhurst (2005), James Riley (2005), Jeff Larentowicz (2005).
They made it to MLS Cup in 2002, then again for three straight years from 2005-2007 on the backs of their talent acquisition, falling short each time. Clint Dempsey left after 2006 and was never really replaced. Twellman's career effectively ended prematurely in the 2008 season when he was accidentally punched in the head while challenging for a header by LA Galaxy keeper Steve Cronin. Joseph's massive midfield presence declined by the early 2010s as he aged. The quality of drafting fell off sharply after 2005 and due to a non-existent scouting department, it was a struggle to bring in quality from abroad.
After some down years, the Revs reached and lost in an MLS Cup for a fifth time in 2014, thanks in large part to the acquisition of Jermaine Jones and Lee Nguyen's near-MVP level performance. However, the form and results of the second half of the 2014 season couldn't be replicated and the Revs have been steadily slipping down the table over the past four seasons. This season, most pundits have NE near the bottom of the East and early results suggest they could be right.
The Revs have had remarkable managerial stability, with only six full-time managers in history, and only three since Steve Nicol was hired in 2002. In part that's because long-time GM Mike Burns gives everyone a notoriously long leash. Nicol (2002-2011) and Heaps (2011-2017) were able to live off of MLS Cup appearances for several years after the team had gone into decline. Brad Friedel (2018-present) is unproven and has been largely unimpressive both in developing an identity and in bringing in talent. To be honest, I don't think the Revs have ever had a particularly skilled manager - even Nicol was more of a man-manager who basically just put talent on the field and got out of their way. There's never seemed to be much interest in him after his tenure ended with the Revs, even though he was only 50 at the time.
The Revs did finally get some real silverware in 2007 when they won the US Open Cup, which remains the only trophy in their history. (No, I don't count conference titles or SuperLiga...) The Revs also reached USOC finals in 2001 and 2016, giving them a 1-7 record in finals overall.
The "State of the Club"
NE has been considered a laggard club within the context of MLS for a long time. The GM and manager are rarely held accountable, and the tiny scouting department - usually among the most minimal in the league - has made it a struggle for the Revs to keep pace with ambitious and heavy-spending competitors. IMO, the Revs have never really adapted to the transition away from the draft as the major source of talent acquisition.
Off the field, playing on a turf field in a giant football stadium very from the city has been a real impediment to building a larger fan culture. The lack of interest shown by the Krafts is palpable and has manifested itself in a weaker on-field product, a lack of buzz around the team, and generally low morale among the fanbase. Boston remains a bastion of "Euro-snobbery" among its soccer fans, but I believe a big factor in that is that the Revs have remained such a niche presence in the Boston sports scene. It is difficult to edge into a market with four old and popular major league sports franchises, but surely a lot more can be done.
2019
It's shaping up to be a long year. The Revs just don't have much high-end talent. They have a collection of mediocre GKs and defenders, none of whom really stand out as above-average talent in the league. CB Michael Mancienne is one of the most expensive defenders in the league, but has done little to live up to the size of his contract. One potential high point is recent DP signing Carles Gil, a Spaniard who has shown some quality so far. However, he's supported on the field by middling DMs like Scott Caldwell, Wilfried Zahibo, and Luis Caicedo. Up front, we have perennial disappointment Juan Agudelo and perennial mediocrity Teal Bunbury, as well as an as-yet-unknown quantity in Juan Fernando Caicedo. Longtime local academy product Diego Fagundez is a solid player, but plateaued long ago. Ecuadorian winger Cristian Penilla was good in 2018, but thus far seems to have taken a step back in 2019.
A few small bright spots: there's some interesting young talent on the team. Justin Rennicks is a former academy forward from Hamilton, MA who signed this winter. He's shown some promise with the U20s. The Revs also signed a pair of wingers from the draft: DeJuan Jones and Canadian Tajon Buchanan. CM Isaac Angking is another academy product on the team, from Providence, as is Somerville attacking midfielder Nicolas Firmino.
The Revs managed a draw on the road in Dallas to open the season, but have dropped their next three games, including home games against Columbus and expansion FC Cincinnati. The Revs host four of their next five games; failure to rack up at least a few wins will put them in a very poor position even at this early stage.