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Let's get ready for some more NASCAR action! These daily fantasy NASCAR rankings for Sunday's Explore the Pocono Mountains 350 at Pocono Raceway were determined by a combination of DraftKings and FanDuel prices, and the projected DFS points each driver is expected to earn in this week’s race.
Each week, we'll present you the weekly rankings, followed by some key analysis of those rankings.
Be sure to also check out all of our other weekly NASCAR DFS articles and analysis to help you set your optimal DFS lineups.
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Fantasy NASCAR Driver Rankings
| Driver Name | DraftKings Rank | FanDuel Rank |
| Alex Bowman | 1 | 1 |
| Kyle Larson | 2 | 3 |
| William Byron | 3 | 4 |
| Kyle Busch | 4 | 2 |
| Denny Hamlin | 5 | 5 |
| Joey Logano | 6 | 6 |
| Chase Elliott | 7 | 7 |
| Ross Chastain | 8 | 11 |
| Kevin Harvick | 9 | 8 |
| Kurt Busch | 10 | 9 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 11 | 12 |
| Ryan Blaney | 12 | 10 |
| Brad Keselowski | 13 | 13 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 14 | 14 |
| Ryan Newman | 15 | 17 |
| Austin Dillon | 16 | 15 |
| Cole Custer | 17 | 18 |
| Tyler Reddick | 18 | 16 |
| Corey LaJoie | 19 | 23 |
| Daniel Suarez | 20 | 19 |
| Chase Briscoe | 21 | 24 |
| Erik Jones | 22 | 20 |
| Bubba Wallace | 23 | 22 |
| Christopher Bell | 24 | 21 |
| Aric Almirola | 25 | 26 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 26 | 25 |
| Ryan Preece | 27 | 27 |
| Anthony Alfredo | 28 | 28 |
| Chris Buescher | 29 | 29 |
| Michael McDowell | 30 | 30 |
| Justin Haley | 31 | 31 |
| James Davison | 32 | 33 |
| Cody Ware | 33 | 32 |
| BJ McLeod | 34 | 34 |
| Josh Bilicki | 35 | 37 |
| Garrett Smithley | 36 | 35 |
| Quin Houff | 37 | 36 |
| Timmy Hill | 38 | 38 |
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NASCAR Rankings Analysis
Welcome to Pocono! Yes, we were just here yesterday.
That race featured one of the wildest endings we've seen recently, as Kyle Larson made a late pass on Alex Bowman and started to pull away. And then, on the final lap, BOOM, a blown tire thrusts Larson into the wall. The 5 car was on the way to tying the record for consecutive wins by a driver, but that pesky tire got into the way.
Larson will now go to a backup car and start in the back, though he'll only be scored as coming from 12th. There's enough risk in him coming from the very back for me to not be quite as high as usual on Larson.
He's still my No. 2 play because of how dominant he's been, but it's hard to ignore Alex Bowman sitting there at just $8,700 on DraftKings, coming off yesterday's win, and starting 20th because they inverted the top 20.
The starting formula for this race also gives us four clear place differential plays at varying price points: Ross Chastain starts 33rd and was running well yesterday before crashing out. He could be a just a bit too chalky, but I'll have a lot of him. Matt DiBenedetto starts 32nd, Ryan Newman starts 37th, and Cole Custer starts 38th. All good cars -- even if Stewart Haas is struggling this year -- starting 32nd or worse and thus offering a ton of place differential upside.
Then there's Corey LaJoie, starting 36th. Before his trouble yesterday, LaJoie had four top 20s in a row and he was running solid at Pocono. This is someone I'll have in a lot of lineups.
Guys who start too high for my liking: Chris Buescher, Michael McDowell, Christopher Bell, Aric Almirola, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. A couple of them -- probably Bell and Stenhouse -- could maintain a spot in the back half of the top 10, but I see all of them finishing with negative PD points, which means there's not much upside.
Martin Truex Jr. starts third, which is a little too high for me when you factor in how Hendrick cars have dominated lately. But he could get some early laps led, so not a complete fade here.
There's a lot of interesting PD points available with the starting lineup as it is. You're pretty much never going to get guys like Hamlin, Logano, and Harvick all starting below 10th, but today you do. That'll make lineup building super interesting.
NASCAR DFS News and Driver Outlooks
More Fantasy NASCAR Analysis
The Keys to Weekly NASCAR Success
NASCAR is back, and it's time for you to win more with RotoBaller! Our NASCAR Premium Package for DFS and betting features several heavy hitters and proven winners.
Jordan McAbee anchors the team with his exclusive NASCAR DFS and betting picks, DFS projections and algorithm-predicted finishing order! Jordan had a 60+ unit betting profit in 2024 NASCAR, and a 25% average annual profit since 2018. He won the FSWA Racing Writer Of The Year award in 2023, and has been nominated for DFS Writer Of The Year in 2024.
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