After staying up until 5 am to watch the USMNT's 2-2 draw against Mexico on Wednesday, a second viewing sounded like a godsend idea. Sure enough, I softened a few marks and toughened a few once I was certain both my eyes were actually open.

Factoring in that I missed out on rating the Sweden win because I was off "the US Soccer matrix" in Italy at the time, watching the El Tri game so late made me feel out of practice - it is in this way that I can kinda relate to several MLS stars who had off nights.

The game was a bit of a thriller, with goals-a-plenty offense until after the break and a long series of crashing challenges in the final 40 minutes. Sure it was a friendly, but we all know some exhibitions are less for show than others. In that light, I'm not sure how the result will be taken by the USMNT fandom.

For me, this game was a good spectacle that did little to solve the uneasy riddles facing coach Bob Bradley - sort of like a tasty meal that is now making your tummy a little tentative.

It was fun to watch while it lasted, but now I'm back to wringing my hands over slowly growing concerns  - will we ever get to try another formation to hopefully improve attack spacing? Since when are we so bad at defending set pieces?, and so on - with the real games rapidly approaching.

It might seem a little daft to give the keeper and both central defenders such high ratings after a 2-2 home draw, but neither Tim Howard nor his stoppers could really be faulted on either Mexico goal. Carlos Bocanegra and Oguchi Onyewu dealt with a great volume of whirring crosses and up the middle attacks with efficiency.

On the other hand, the visitors (if "visitors" can technically enjoy 75% crowd support) dominated the middle of the park from touchline to touchline. I did not time it, so don't go posting this on Wikipedia, but I could honestly swear that Landon Donovan twice went without a touch for 15 minutes.

From a coaching standpoint, this was a friendly, but the result could perhaps be another small alert that the boss needs to start tinkering tactically to find the A-game.

US Player Ratings

Tim Howard (7) - The Everton keeper showed why he is the man to knock off the mountain now. Howard moved well to make shots from all angles easier to stop and can't be blamed for the two Mexico goals.

Drew Moor (4.5) - Were it not for a pair of outstanding driven crosses, this could have been the clear low grade on the night. He had all kinds of trouble with whichever El Tri attacker happened to be darkening his door and obviously lagged a half-step behind on set pieces. He's looked better in other trials, so let's not be too harsh on the youngster.

Carlos Bocanegra (7) - With Cory Gibbs injured, Bocanegra is now probably our best help defender, and he certainly proved that in Houston. 'Los had a nicely well-rounded game, considering some sweetly struck long balls and his finely-tuned cross radar.

Oguchi Onyewu (7) - Simply put, Gooch's best US outing since the Italy match at World Cup 2006. He buried a fine header for the opener against the run of play and did a fine job of keeping Bolo Bautista away from his trigger points. By the way... once again, he picked up an iffy card. You'd think CONCACAF officials could figure out he's not actually throwing people around like rag dolls.

Ramiro Corrales (4.5) - He may have settled down defensively in the latter stages, or maybe Mexico just decided to pick on someone else. Either way, it was not an advertisement to move ahead of Jonathan Bornstein and Heath Pearce (who I'd have liked to have seen get a run-out Wednesday, considering his club situation) on the left back depth chart. Maybe it was an off day, maybe it was the offseason after a Norwegian title and move back to MLS, but Corrales can do better.

Michael Bradley (5.5) - I gave him a near average rating because he had to change from his Heerenveen role, but this performance was a wide notch below his recent Eredivisie showings. On the occasions when the 'Nats did move forward smoothly, Bradley was invariably involved and he managed to squash more than few Mexico rushes. The question over how best to utilize him (and a few other midfielders) in a US shirt is an open topic because it sure doesn't seem to be the current game plan.

Ricardo Clark (5) - This was a strange performance from Ricardo, not really the stuff he's properly known for. He most certainly did not stay in tune with his midfield partner, which is absolutely essential when running this particular set. I'll be honest: the mark for Ricardo was a little lower because he is older than Bradley and this was not his first time playing Mexico.

Landon Donovan (5.5) - As mentioned earlier, Donovan disappeared for long stretches of the match - which basically cannot happen in competitive play. The nifty touches and attack IQ were evident at times, but we need him to be much more of a persistent nuisance. As with other key guys, his best tactical use remains up in the air.

Bobby Convey (4.5) - Being that this set doesn't even remotely suit him and he is still clearly in form recovery mode, I am not inclined to be overly rough on Convey. He did the little things fairly well, but that bit of zip-and-go needs to pop back into his legs and/or head. With DaMarcus Beasley out, he still has a little time to find himself.

Clint Dempsey (6) - An oddly nullified goal aside, Deuce didn't bring forth much end product at all, but it wasn't for a lack of honest effort. As he does so well with Fulham, Dempsey creates spaces for others with his movement. It's a pity we didn't attack it better... and, of course, that his one-man laser show didn't stand up as the 3-2 winner.

Josmer Altidore (7) - He did most of the right things when the US attack bothered to move forward in packs, but it's a little too soon to expect Jozy to school numbers by himself. All in all, a fine first international start, extra points for the opponent. The kid looked eager to make good touches and stay on his horse - one less Rafa Marquez undercut challenge in this world and he could have had a double.

Coach Bob Bradley (5.5) - Beyond usual concerns over the formation, I can't have too many complaints this week. However, the "fix the set piece defense" red light is flashing - the coach needs to address this at his earliest opportunity. In the end, though, I marked him down a previously promised half point for using the rusty bucket, but that was it. He gave some tired/out of shape/green internationals enough motivation to slug it out with the big rival in front of a crowd that wasn't exactly cheering them on, and that counts for something.

Subs:

Benny Feilhaber (6) - Benny came on to close the central midfield gap well, but he still looks off his top game - the feet are willing, but the hips are a bit rusty.

Freddy Adu (5.5) - In limited time, he tried a few things that didn't work. On another night, they will.

Eddie Lewis (6) - Eddinho showed some good vision to steer the ball forward a few times and actually seemed to slow the Mexico procession down our left side, but as I said, they may have just gone the other way for a change.

Maurice Edu (-) - The MLS Rookie of the Year didn't really have time to get into the flow, but didn't muck anything up either.