RADIO
Scott Engel's post-qualifying updates for daily fantasy NASCAR and the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. DraftKings, FanDuel DFS picks for the Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Over the next few weeks, RotoBaller will be ramping up NASCAR coverage to provide readers with more daily fantasy NASCAR articles and analysis to help you win on DFS sites DraftKings and FanDuel.
The NASCAR writing team will be anchored by FSWA Hall Of Famer and two-time FSWA award winner Scott Engel, and also by four-time FSWA award winner Daniel Dobish who has won NASCAR writer of the year twice.
Stay tuned for lots of great NASCAR DFS articles, news and analysis over the next few days. In the meantime, let's take a look at some post-qualifying updates and DFS picks for the Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend.
Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 - The DFS Favorites
It looks like Kevin Harvick, who has historically been the best of active drivers at Atlanta, will now be widely owned after qualifying 18th at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Harvick’s Driver Rating of 137.3 is the highest at AMS over the past three seasons, and his 99.4 mark is the second-highest ever at the site. Harvick is the highest priced driver on both FanDuel ($14,000) and DraftKings ($12,200). You may have to pivot off him in tournaments to deviate away from the high ownership, but lock him in for cash games.
Brad Keselowski starts 19th and is third highest onDraftKings at $11,100 and fourth on FanDuel at $13,000, He may be the prime pivot off Harvick to also gain significant place differential points. Keselowski has the second highest DR over the last three years at AMS (114.6).
Joey Logano starts 27th and may be the most popular play of all, but he has never won at Atlanta and his all-time DR of 82.6 is just 10th best in the field. Logano is sure to register some Place Differential points but I would expect Harvick to be a better contender for the win. Logano is $11,700 onDraftKings (second highest) and $13,200 on FanDuel (third). I would pivot off Logano before I would do the same on Harvick.
Chase Elliott starts 22nd and is a prime alternative to either Harvick or Logano, or a nice pairing with either in cash games. This is ‘home cooking” for the Georgia native, as he has an average finish of 7.7 in three AMS starts. Elliott is very alluring at $9,700 onDraftKings and worth the spend at $12,200 on FanDuel.
Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin should also be a popular play after continuing to show early-season momentum by qualifying fourth. He is $10,000 on DraftKings and $12,000 on FanDuel. You should always roll out multiple lineups to spread your possibilities out in DFS NASCAR, and you must get Hamlin into a few of your tournament entries. Hamlin is third-best in Fastest Laps all-time at AMS, making him an even better play on DraftKings.
Clint Bowyer is one of my favorite DraftKings plays at $9,700 and I also like him on FanDuel at $10,800. Bowyer qualified third and will come out of qualifying with fresher tires than most, meaning he could push to the front quickly and lead some laps. Bowyer looked great handling his car in qualifying and had the form of a dominator. Bowyer leads all drivers on Fastest Laps Run, making him a lock on DraftKings. Bowyer was also fastest in first practice, bolstering his outlook heading into the weekend.
Other Notable NASCAR DFS Options
Ryan Blaney ($8,900 on DraftKings, $10,500 on FanDuel) starts 26th and is a solid play for upside and PD points. He does not have a great track record so far at AMS (18.4 average finish in three starts) but this could be his breakthrough year and you must take the shot with him any time he starts lower in the field.
Aric Almirola ($8,700 on DraftKings, $10,000 on FanDuel) took the pole for the second time in his career and has fresh enough tires to lead a few laps, but should ultimately fade a few spots. He did well to pull away for the pole late in qualifying and can still finish Top 5, but I would be looking more to Bowyer and Harvick to contend for the win. Almirola has one Top-10 finish in eight AMS starts, but he looked very fast and aggressive during qualifying.
Daniel Suarez ($7,900 on DraftKings) may be the ultimate bargain on FanDuel, where he is just 6,800. He was pushing for the pole during qualifying and can remain in the Top 10. Erik Jones ($8,100 on DraftKings, $8,800 on FanDuel) is another nice value play when you consider he has an average finish of 12.5 in two AMS races.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ($7,500 on DraftKings, $7,600 on FanDuel) starts on the front row with Almirola but should drop in the field progressively, so avoid him. Rookie Daniel Hemric ($6,800 on DraftKings, $5,000 on FanDuel) is in good equipment with Richard Childress Racing and can deliver a second consecutive finish near the Top 20.
