The sixth-seeded Carolina Chaos upset the third-seeded Boston Cannons 8-4 while the Maryland Whipsnakes squeaked by the Denver Outlaws 11-10 in the quarterfinals Monday at Gillette Stadium. But in a league where parity prospers, it seemed just another day.

It begs the questions: Is the first-round Cash App Playoff bye a blessing or a curse? Would you risk the first-round upset to be at your sharpest for the semifinals?

For the No. 1 seed Atlas, probably not, despite a season where two of the team’s three losses came after a bye. But New Yrok is confident this could be the year it finally reaches the championship stage because it’s winning the “pieces game,” midfielder Myles Jones said.

New York is quarterbacked by Jeff Teat, who set the single-season PLL scoring record this season, and Xander Dickson and Connor Shellenberger round out the most efficient offense in the league. The middle of the field is controlled by wunderkinds Trevor Baptiste at the stripe and Liam Entenmann in net. The midfield boasts the highest offensive efficiency within the short 32-second shot clock after a won faceoff. The close defense is young and fast, while short-stick defensive midfielder Danny Logan continues to win one-on-one matchups and long-stick midfielder Tyler Carpenter stays the ground ball leader among all non-faceoff specialists.

“We joke around it’s not the X’s and O’s, it’s the Jimmy’s and the Joe’s,” Jones said. “That’s why you’re successful in this league.”

But that success faltered twice after a weeks-long rest this season. 

New York lost to the Maryland Whipsnakes 16-12 in Minneapolis after coming off a league-wide bye week. It then dropped a game to Boston 17-12 the week following the All-Star break and won its final game after a week’s rest when New York overcame the Utah Archers 15-11 in Denver.

“How do you respond off a bye? I don’t think we’ve done a great job of that so far,” midfielder Dox Aitken said. 

The Atlas were not able to come together and practice in regular-season bye weeks, but they were during the quarterfinals. The team flew to Boston and practiced at Gillette Stadium last week, something Aitken said “will be super positive for us” and allow the Atlas to “stay sharp” heading into Saturday’s matchup. 

“The focus is on getting back to it,” Jones said. “The first-round bye allowed us to go to Gillette Stadium with no pressure, no butterflies, no pregame jitters. We just go out there and enjoy each other’s company, practice really hard and get ourselves ready.”

The players and schemes that boded well for New York all season will remain unchanged, except for potentially Shellenberger. The QB2 of the Atlas attack was ruled out for the team’s regular-season finale with a left foot injury and is questionable for the semifinal.

“Keep it the same thing. Keep giving the ball to Jeff. We’re working around him,” Aitken said. “Getting back on defense and covering up transition numbers. Nothing to change, just how we come off a bye week.”

The Atlas play the fourth-seeded Maryland Whipsnakes on Saturday on Long Island.