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I'm not really surprised that Ellis has stepped down. She's been taking flack for five years. She can walk away with back to back World Cups and let someone else have the hot seat.

The rebuilding starts now. The U.S. was again the oldest team in the field, but this time around, the older players were big contributors. That wasn't the case in 2015. There's a lot less second guessing this time around. Still, just based on age, one would think Carli Lloyd, Ali Krieger, Allie Long, and Becky Sauerbrunn are done. They may stick around for next year's Olympics, but it would be surprising to see them in 2023. Megan Rapinoe is also older, now 34, but she has been playing phenomenal soccer. (I just wish she'd knock off the politics, but ….) My guess is that she'll also be gone soon. Tobin Heath, Alex Morgan, Christen Press and Julie Ertz are all on the bubble; they might have another cycle left, but all have to be question marks.

The U.S. team has got terrific young players on the backline and in midfield. Forward will be the question mark. Mallory Pugh is the heir apparent as one of the wingers, but it's wide open after that.