Predicting the 2018 NASCAR Playoff Field

by Julian Spivey

16. Clint Bowyer
This is a sign that the NASCAR playoffs probably have too many drivers. Clint Bowyer hasn’t won a race in five seasons and has kind of become a forgotten man, but Stewart-Hass Racing is a good team and surely that streak can’t continue forever.

15. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. surprised many last season winning half of the sport’s restrictor plate races (one each at Talladega and Daytona). He’s never been a threat at any other track, but there’s always a chance he’ll get another plate win and qualify for his second straight playoffs.

14. William Byron
I should’ve learned my lesson picking rookies to make the playoffs last year when Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones made me 0-for-2. But, William Byron, who has dominating the Xfinity and Camping World series the last few years, is driving for Hendrick Motorsports and could have the greatest rookie season in quite some time.

13. Kurt Busch
Kurt Busch, the reigning Daytona 500 champion, is seemingly a lock to get a win almost every season. He doesn’t seem to run up front as much as he used to, but a win will get him in the playoffs.

12. Daniel Suarez
I thought Daniel Suarez would crack the playoffs as a rookie last year and get his first NASCAR Cup Series win. He didn’t. But, 2018 will be the year.

11. Erik Jones
See Daniel Suarez.

10. Ryan Blaney
Ryan Blaney won his first career Cup Series race last year racing for the Wood Brothers to qualify for the playoffs. Blaney moved over to a third Penske Racing team this year and his career should only get better from here. I’m thinking multiple wins for Blaney this year, if the addition of a third team doesn’t hurt Penske overall.

9. Chase Elliott
It’s frankly dumbfounding that Chase Elliott didn’t win a race in one of his first two seasons in the Cup Series and he’s been runner-up seven times, including five just last year. There’s no way he’s not going to break on through to the Victory Lane side this season.

8. Denny Hamlin
Denny Hamlin has won at least one race in all 12 of his NASCAR Cup Series seasons. He’s basically a lock to win a race and qualify for the playoffs every year.

7. Joey Logano
Joey Logano missing the playoffs in 2017 was the biggest shock in NASCAR last season, in my opinion. He won a race at Richmond but had something illegal on the car and the win didn’t qualify him for the playoffs. I’m sure he’ll visit Victory Lane multiple times this year.

6. Kyle Larson
Kyle Larson won a career-high four times in 2017 and arguably had the second-best season in the sport behind champion Martin Truex Jr. I’m not sure he’ll win that many times this year, but he should be a lock for at least one.

5. Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowski only has one winless season in his career – his rookie season. He’s won at least one race in his last seven seasons. He’s a virtual lock to make the playoffs.

4. Kevin Harvick
Over the last five years or so Kevin Harvick has been the most consistent driver in the NASCAR Cup Series. He’s won a race in each of the last eight seasons. Harvick is also a lock to make the playoffs.

3. Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Johnson is going for his record-breaking eighth NASCAR Cup Series championship. Johnson has incredibly won multiple races in all 16 of his NASCAR Cup Series season and is arguably the greatest driver in NASCAR history. He’s a playoff lock, but his history in the playoff segments hasn’t always been the greatest.

2. Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch has won a NASCAR Cup Series race in each of his 13 seasons and is seemingly a lock for the playoffs even in seasons in which he breaks both of his legs (he actually won the title that year). Busch is one of the few drivers in NASCAR that can almost seemingly win at will. He should thrive in the playoffs.

1. Martin Truex Jr.
You’d have to be pretty dumb, in my opinion, not to predict Martin Truex Jr. as the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series champion in 2018 for a second straight year. I never thought I’d say this even three years ago, but he, his crew chief Cole Pearn and his entire Furniture Row Motorsports Toyota team is clearly the team to beat in NASCAR today, especially when it comes the 1.5-mile tracks that populate the sport’s schedule. 

---