Playoff Points: Blaney scores stage points, Hendrick enters the conversation

By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor

Following each regular season points race, Kickin’ the Tires takes a deep look at the current playoff grids for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, evaluating each team’s playoff odds and highlighting those that made steps in the right direction, and those who dug themselves into a hole. 

Track: Texas Motor Speedway

Event: O’Reilly Auto Parts 500

Race Winner: Jimmie Johnson

Stage Winner(s): Ryan Blaney (Won Both Stages)

Who Won Big

• Jimmie Johnson: Remember when we were all doubting Johnson’s ability to put together a good finish? You know, one week ago? Well, now the seven-time champion has a race win to his name, all-but guaranteeing him a spot in the postseason and adding five playoff points to his championship resume.
• Ryan Blaney: Sure, Blaney’s 12th-place finish was a letdown after his dominant beginning, but the Wood Brothers Racing star tallied the fourth-most points on the day, scoring 20 stages points and two precious playoff points with wins in each of the first two stages. Now the sophomore sits sixth in the standings, 73 points ahead of the cutoff.
•  Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Texas couldn’t have come at a better time for NASCAR’s most popular driver. Earnhardt was finally able to show signs of life after what had previously been a dreadful start to the 2017 season. The North Carolinian’s fifth-place run elevated him to 20th in the standings, just 18 points out of the current playoff grid.

Who Hurt Their Odds:

• Joe Gibbs Racing: Save for Kyle Busch, who has run marginally better than his teammates, Joe Gibbs Racing have found themselves collectively on the playoff bubble through the early stages of the season.  Finishes of 15th (Busch), 16th (Matt Kenseth), 19th (Daniel Suarez) and 25th (Denny Hamlin) on Sunday did little to help that. JGR currently has only two drivers inside of the playoff grid, with one – Hamlin – sitting directly in the cutoff position.
• Kasey Kahne: The reason that Hamlin held on to a preliminary postseason spot leaving Texas was that Kahne’s day went even worse. A broken axle midway through the event led Kahne to a 38th-place result, bumping him out of the playoff grid by four points.
• Erik Jones: After a win in Saturday’s XFINITY Series race, hopes were high that Jones could parlay his winning experience on the repaved Texas oval to Sunday success, but the Michigander struggled heavily en-route to a 22nd-place result. As a result, the rookie finds himself 14th in the standings, just 12 points to the good.

Playoff Standings: 

Where They Stand

(All But) Locked In

• Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Martin Truex, Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch
  • Race Winners
• Chase Elliott, Joey Logano
  • Both drivers hold a healthy advantage in the standings and have a track record that indicates they aren’t likely to drop.

Safe (For Now)

• Ryan Blaney, Kyle Busch, Jamie McMurray
  • Blaney’s strong showing Sunday and full-race advantage over the playoff bubble have him sitting in a good position to make his first appearance in the playoff.
  • Busch has endured his share of struggles, but finds himself inside of the top 10 even as Joe Gibbs Racing struggles.
  • McMurray hasn’t been as strong as teammate Larson, but has impressed as he reaps the benefits of Chip Ganassi Racing’s early speed. Considering he’s made the postseason field in each of the past two seasons with much less impressive showings, it seems safe to assume he can continue to contend moving forward.

More Work to Do

• Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick
  • Stewart Haas Racing’s top two drivers in the standings have the pedigree to suggest they’ll join teammate Kurt Busch in the postseason, but the team’s transition to Ford has led to occasional struggles with inconsistency that they need to iron out.

On the Bubble

• Trevor Bayne, Erik Jones, Denny Hamlin

Within Reach

• Kasey Kahne, Aric Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Austin Dillon, Matt Kenseth, Daniel Suarez, Ty Dillon

Likely Need to Win

• AJ Allmendinger, Paul Menard, Chris Buescher, Michael McDowell, Danica Patrick, Landon Cassill

Playoff Points

Stage Points

Sunday’s results

Season Totals