Nationwide Power: Week 35

November 23, 2008 1:01pm CST

In both the Nationwide and Cup Series, Carl Edwards made a determined charge to end the season. His path to either championship was narrow, however, and instead of worrying about the mathematics of it all, he decided the best course of action was to simply win the race and let the points fall where they may. He swept the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Edwards wasn't the only driver to outperform Clint Bowyer at the end, as both he and Kyle Busch swept the top-five in the last five races of the season (in events they were entered). Busch was kept from being perfect only by missing the Kroger on Track for the Cure 250 at Memphis Motorsports Park, while Bowyer finished 16th in that race.

1. Carl Edwards Fantasy power average: 5.61
Last week’s rank: first

Edwards suffered through a difficult summer in the second series, but after finishing 37th at Bristol Motor Speedway in August, he reloaded and fired every cartridge in his belt. From the Camping World RV Service 300 at Auto Club Speedway through the season finale, he swept the top five in nine consecutive races and earned an average finish of 2.4. While his salary cap soared in that span, it never mattered because fantasy owners weren't about to release him.

2. Kyle Busch Fantasy power average: 7.24
Last week’s rank: second

In the second half of the season, Busch skipped four races, but that was practically the only time he was not a good value. With six of his record-tying 10 wins coming late in the year as well as four second- or third-place finishes, he was another driver who deserved to be locked down on your roster. The only time he stumbled was when he was slowed by crash damage at Kansas Speedway and even more remarkable, he logged these numbers while running for three different car owners.

3. Clint Bowyer Fantasy power average: 8.38
Last week’s rank: fourth

Bowyer had a lead to protect in the final races and that is precisely what he did. His one and only victory for the season came in the fifth week of competition, but he stayed in striking distance of the lead all year and in the final six races he finished sixth or better in all but one event. Slow and steady won the championship, but all those strong results earned maximum points as well.

4. Joey Logano Fantasy power average: 9.77
Last week’s rank: sixth

Logano's salary cap never caught up with his potential since he was not yet 18 years old when the season started, which forced Fantasy Cup to add him mid-season. Even though reality set in somewhere along the way, and he was less of a sure thing on a weekly basis to earn top-fives, he never finished worse than 16th. That kept the down side to a minimum and allowed fantasy owners to budget their money wisely.

5. David Ragan Fantasy power average: 10.10
Last week’s rank: fifth

Ragan failed to win a race in 2008 in either series and in fact, his only major stock car victory came in the 2005 ARCA William Bros 200 at Lanier Raceway, but fantasy owners know how important he was to their rosters. This dark horse racked up eight consecutive finishes of 14th or better from Auto Club through Phoenix International Raceway, which made him extremely attractive in the season-ender at Homestead. Unfortunately, he chose that week to stumble and finished only 23rd.

6. Denny Hamlin Fantasy power average: 10.32
Last week’s rank: eighth

For most of the season, Hamlin could be included in the same league as Edwards and Busch, but he shook fantasy owners' confidence at Watkins Glen International and Bristol in back-to-back efforts when he finished in the 30s twice. In six starts that followed, he climbed back to the front half of the pack and never finished worse than 14th, but somehow his three results outside the top five are more memorable than his solo victory at Kansas.

7. Mike Bliss Fantasy power average: 11.76
Last week’s rank: seventh

Bliss' seventh-place ranking is all the more impressive because he is the only driver among the top 10 who is not aligned with a superteam. The James Finch indy made a lot of noise in the last half of the season and more than paid his way with a third at O'Reilly Raceway Park and a second at Dover International Speedway, but even when he missed it was not by much. In the final 18 races of the season, he failed to crack the top 20 only twice.

8. Jeff Burton Fantasy power average: 11.82
Last week’s rank: NA

Every time we were ready to green flag Burton, he stumbled. A blown engine at Las Vegas Motor Speedway early in the year caused us to play him cautiously until he finished third and second in his next two "cookie-cutter" races. Then he crashed at Phoenix this spring and finished 31st, which was followed by another result outside the top 20. Six consecutive top-15s—including a second at Lowe's Motor Speedway this fall—finally had us confident again, but he crashed all by himself at Homestead. Ouch!

9. Brad Keselowski Fantasy power average: 11.89
Last week’s rank: ninth

The final five races of Keselowski's season looked like a hillbilly's teeth: only every other one was good. After posting three consecutive top-10s at Dover, Kansas and Lowe's, he finished outside the top 15 in alternating races until he finally found the top five at Homestead. That will leave fantasy owners a lot to ponder in the coming weeks before the 2009 season-opener at Daytona International Speedway.

10. Scott Wimmer Fantasy power average: 12.48
Last week’s rank: eighth

When he finished second at Richmond International Raceway soon after it was announced he would not return to Richard Childress Racing in 2009, Wimmer quipped that he was going to win his final six events. He came close that week with a second and the following race with a fourth at Dover. Unfortunately, he never saw the top-five again, although he did come close with a sixth in the Ford 300.

Positions 11 and higher