NASCAR Draft Kit: Updated 2015 Sprint Cup Driver Rankings

Previous Rankings

1. Kevin Harvick - After five victories and claiming his first Sprint Cup Series championship, Harvick has to be seen as the top driver entering the 2015 season. This team was on top of their game last season virtually wire-to-wire. The challenge for Stewart Haas Racing will be to keep Harvick there in the upcoming season.

2. Joey Logano - If you're looking for the next first-time winner of the Sprint Cup championship, look no further than Logano. Two, strong back-to-back seasons at Penske Racing in the No. 22 Ford have served notice. Logano will be a multi-race winner and championship contender going forward.

3. Jimmie Johnson - The sun hasn't quite set on Johnson's dominance yet. Sure, the field has caught up to him to a great degree the last three years, but he's still the 500-pound gorilla on the tack that everyone aims to beat. All it will take is for a few breaks to go his way in 2015 and he'll claim his seventh championship.

4. Jeff Gordon - Speaking of sun setting, Gordon is entering his 24th and final season of Sprint Cup Series racing. With 92 career victories and four championships to this point, there's no doubting his legendary status. Given his near brush with Chase glory last year, the motivation of racing in his final year will be a dangerous thing for the field.

5. Brad Keselowski - Personal demons and on-track scuffles aside, Keselowski put an exclamation point on his abilities with that clutch Chase win at Talladega last fall. The No. 2 Penske Team seems to be able to bench press the moon when asked. However, Keselowski's own short fuse and hot temper are all that keep him from contending for that second championship.
6. Carl Edwards - If the bounce that we've seen Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick recently enjoy after team jumps are any indication, Edwards could be poised for a huge season in 2015. Winning races and contending for championships the last five years have been a stumbling block for Edwards, maybe not this season.

7. Matt Kenseth - After a bit of a sophomore slump at Joe Gibbs Racing, expect the No. 20 team to turn it up a notch this season. Kenseth has race-winning and championship contending potential, as he showed in 2013. Although the veteran may be a bit out-done and overshadowed by his new teammate, Carl Edwards, Kenseth is still one of the elite drivers in the Sprint Cup Series.

8. Dale Earnhardt Jr. - Eanhardt will be hard-pressed to equal the four wins that he posted last season. With a new crew chief calling the shots, it could take some time to regain the momentum built with Steve Letarte. We fully expect to see the consistency that Earnhardt has shown the last four seasons, but race wins and championship contention could fall short.

9. Kyle Busch - Coming off a bad season, we expect Busch and the JGR No. 18 team to rebound in 2015. After failing to advance in the Chase at Talladega, he seemingly "mailed it in" during the final four races of last season. That's always a disturbing problem with any driver. However, his past four-season trend line suggests a return to 2-3 wins and 18-20 Top-10s this season.

10. Denny Hamlin - With four teams now at Joe Gibbs Racing, things are getting a little crowded in that shop, but that doesn't diminish Hamlin in the least. His up-and-down 2014 season still led to a Chase berth and him being one of the four drivers eligible for the championship at Homestead. Hamlin has multi-win and championship potential, so remember that on fantasy racing draft day.

11. Kyle Larson - While wary of the sophomore slump, it's difficult not to be high on this talented, young driver. Larson wowed the NASCAR world with his big rookie season in 2014. Though the CGR driver didn't crack the Chase field, he piled up eight Top-5 and 17 Top-10 finishes. A first career victory seems very likely in the upcoming season.

12. Kasey Kahne - A multi-year extension and vote of confidence from boss Rick Hendrick have Kahne all set in the No. 5 Chevrolet through 2018. While last season's one-win and 11 Top-10 campaign fell short in a lot of respects, there is good reason to believe in a rebound. Somewhere within this driver is championship potential that has yet to be tapped.

13. Ryan Newman - Last season's near-brush with the Sprint Cup championship will be memorable in many respects. It's a testament to Newman's consistency as a driver and the talent of his team. The inability to win races keeps us from ranking Newman higher, but his rock-steady consistency is also valuable in fantasy NASCAR.

14. Tony Stewart - We've given Smoke a bit of a bump over our early January rankings. We saw an energized and refocused Stewart during NASCAR media week in late January, and as many cited his "swagger" was back. The mental part of the sport is half the game. It appears his recovery and potential rebound has come at least this far. The three-time champion has a lot to prove yet on the race track.

15. Austin Dillon - The young RCR driver learned a lot in 2014 and he showed some noticeable consistency for a campaign that was mostly on-the-job training. While Dillon's four Top-10 finishes last season fell well short of what we expected, that increase in production should happen in season two. Don't be surprised if he closes the gap between him and last season's rookie of the year, Kyle Larson.

16. Clint Bowyer - Michael Waltrip Racing's disastrous 2014 season pulled Bowyer down to career-worst numbers in the Sprint Cup Series. However, the veteran still posted 15 Top-10 finishes to underscore his ability in a down season. Bowyer has been a Top-10 standings driver for most of the prior seven years and we should see him begin to head back in that direction in 2015.

17. Greg Biffle - The driver with the most pressure on him in the upcoming season could be Biffle. With the departure of teammates Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards over the last couple seasons, he finds himself the top dog at a depleted Roush Fenway Racing stable. Last season was one of the veteran driver's worst in the last seven years. While he's a good rebound candidate we have to really wonder how much in this shaky race camp.

18. Kurt Busch - Busch has taken the biggest hit in the rankings since our initial January rankings came out. The almost tabloid nature of his courtroom testimony against his former girlfriend in December and January have to be seen as a major distraction. Until his court business is settled, it's hard to be optimistic about the No. 41 team's potential to perform.
19. Jamie McMurray - High expectations ride with the No. 1 team this season. His 13 Top-10 finishes last season were his best since 2004, although it did not materialize a berth in the Chase. That's where McMurray needs to work in 2015. He needs to improve his consistency and find the key to victory lane again if he hopes to climb these rankings.

20. Paul Menard - Although he didn't find his way to victory lane last season, Menard had one of his better season's from a productivity and numbers standpoint in 2014. His five Top-5 and 13 Top-10 finishes were both career best marks. Those performances didn't help in the standings and he failed to make the Chase. If RCR is going to grow as a camp, Menard has got to step up in 2015.

21. Brian Vickers - Coming off a bad season and health problems that will keep Vickers sidelined for the first two events, we have to be optimistic but cautious with the MWR No. 55 team. The potential is here to get into the Chase and maybe even win a short track event. However, we have to temper those expectations due to health concerns and MWR's climb back to where they were a couple seasons ago.

22. A.J. Allmendinger - Things were pretty good for the No. 47 team last season. The move to Chevrolet paid off big as Allmendinger posted his first career victory and made his first Chase field. The Top-10 totals were a bit disappointing at only five, but his week-in, week-out consistency of posting Top-15 finishes was noteworthy. Allmendinger posted five Top-15 finishes during last season's 10-race Chase for the Cup.

23. Aric Almirola - Things should remain pretty much status quo for Almirola and the RPM No. 43 team. It will be hard to improve on last year's campaign of one win and seven Top-10s to go with a Chase berth. Those were all career-best marks for Almirola. One area of work that should see some improvement is average finish (21.4) which correlates to improved consistency.

24. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Now entering season three, expectations will increase for Stenhouse. With the departure of Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth two seasons before, more focus and pressure will fall on the No. 17 Ford team. With only five Top-10 finishes last season, there is a lot to work on. Stenhouse had his most success on short tracks and super speedways, with his problems being mainly on cookie-cutter intermediate ovals. Make note of that in weekly lineup leagues.

25. Martin Truex Jr. - It's hard to keep a good man down, but that's exactly what happened to Truex last season. His move to Furniture Row Racing didn't go as well as hoped. He fell to 24th-place in the driver standings by season's end, a career-worst mark and only patched together five Top-10 finishes. Optimism for improvement runs high, but they'll have to show a lot early on in the upcoming season.

26. Sam Hornish Jr. - Hornish gets a new shot at NASCAR's top division and a new team at Richard Petty Motorsports in the No. 9 Ford. Marcos Ambrose carved out a good reputation and some good numbers at this team before heading back to Australia. Hornish's years of NASCAR experience and success at the Xfinity Series level the last two years should be of great help in this transition.

27. Trevor Bayne - After 5 years of part-time racing, Bayne will finally get a full slate of 36 races in 2015. Additionally, he'll get his first season of competing at Roush Fenway Racing instead of affiliate Wood Brothers Racing. The experience of 58 Cup starts will help, but the problems at Roush Fenway Racing will need to improve before we up our expectations of this driver and team.

28. Danica Patrick - A new season and another new crew chief for Patrick. She is entering her third full-time season and now is on her third crew chief in Daniel Knost. The two wrapped up the end of last season with the final three races, ending on a positive note with a Top-20 finish at Homestead. Optimism rises again for the No. 10 team, but Patrick is going to have to put some good back-to-back finishes together before we buy into the hype.

29. Casey Mears - Mears had one of his best campaigns in several years in 2014. The veteran driver posted three Top-10 finishes, all on super speedways, en route to his best season performance for Germain Racing. Mears average finish of 22.3 was his best mark since the 2009 season. This small team may finally be climbing the Sprint Cup ladder, albeit one rung at a time.

30. Justin Allgaier - HScott Motorsports is growing at a very fast pace, and they have talented youngster Allgaier as the face of the small team. His rookie 2014 season was filled with ups-and-downs, but ended on a good note. Allgaier claimed two Top-15 and five Top-20 finishes during the 10-race Chase which seems to point to a bright future.

31. Michael Annett - Annett signed a deal in January to drive a new, second team for HScott Motorsports. He gets the prerequisite pop in the rankings to reflect his new team on the rise. The young driver labored to only four Top-20 finishes last season with his old team at Tommy Baldwin Racing. We should see a jump in performance with his new race team.

32. Ron Hornaday Jr. - The 21-season NASCAR veteran and four-time truck series champion will return to full-time Sprint Cup racing for the first time since the 2001 season. While his accomplishments are lacking at NASCAR's top level, Hornaday is approaching legendary status for his accomplishments in the lower divisions. His truck series team closed after just 16 events last season, but he piled up 10 Top-10 finishes in those starts. The talent level is still unquestionable even at 56-years of age.

33. Cole Whitt - Gets a promotion to Front Row Motorsports and the No. 35 Ford. Whitt raced admirably and competitively for BK Racing last season. He was the most consistent and competitive driver in that camp. His seven Top-25 finishes compared to just four DNF's were good results given the team he raced for in 2015. Whitt has a lot of upside in the move to FRM.

34. Ryan Blaney - The first part-time driver in our rankings has a lot of potential. Blaney is a five-time winner between his Camping World Truck and Xfinity Series resume. He's also piled up 58 Top-10 finishes between the two series in just three short years. The level of talent is unquestionable. Blaney will get a half-season of 18 starts in the Wood Brothers Racing No. 21 team and he'll make his presence known on the track each time he suits up.

35. David Gilliland - Front Row Motorsports experienced a downturn in 2014, but Gilliland seemed to weather the dip a bit better than his teammate David Ragan. The journeyman driver failed to crack the Top 10 and posted a 28.8 average finish last season. The No. 38 team will be under the new direction of crew chief Donnie Wingo this season, so Gilliland should see a bit of a bounce in performance back to his 2013 levels.

36. David Ragan - Ragan's lone Top-10 finish and 35th-place effort in the final driver standings were disappointing to say the least. FRM expands to three teams this season and hopes to get Ragan going back in the right direction. He's normally a top performer on the super speedways, but he was even disappointing on those ovals last season. The team and driver have a lot of work to do in 2015.

37. Reed Sorenson - This veteran driver did some admirable work for Tommy Baldwin Racing last season in the No. 36 Chevrolet. Sorenson returns to build on what he started in 2014. He was the more consistent of the two TBR teams. While he didn't post any Top-10s, he did turn in the most consistent performances, and limited his DNF's to just five, none over the last half of the season.

38. Landon Cassill - Cassill made 34 of the 36 events last season after missing two early-season starts at Phoenix and Las Vegas. The young driver made the most of a lean situation in this small team. Hillman Racing has picked up six new chassis over the off-season from Childress Racing. They seem intent on digging in and growing, and they couldn't have much better driver than Cassill for that purpose.

39. Alex Bowman - Bowman was a surprise hire in the No. 7 Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet after Michael Annett bolted for HScott Motorsports in late January. The young driver gets a team upgrade with the move to TBR over his old camp at BK Racing. Bowman suffered through a performance-plagued rookie season with six DNF's. He should improve gradually at this new team.

40. Chase Elliott - The next big thing to hit the Sprint Cup Series will be Elliott and his incredible driving talent. The son of NASCAR legend, Bill Elliott, will only get a tidy five starts to show what he can do in a fifth Hendrick car this season, but the preview is the future of this mega race camp. Elliott is poised to take over the famed No. 24 Chevrolet of Jeff Gordon in 2016, so this will be the sneak preview.

41. J.J. Yeley - Will jump to BK Racing in 2015, likely in the No. 83 Toyota although the car number hasn't been announced at this point. The journeyman driver did a lot of start-and-park driving last season but he ended the season on a positive note with this same team in seven starts. Yeley generally kept his car running at the end of these events and laid a foundation to build on for this season.

42. Josh Wise - The 32-year-old Californian will take the seat of the No. 98 Chevrolet once again. Wise helped Phil Parsons Racing through a tough campaign that only netted six Top-25 finishes. The good news is that they stayed on the race track and avoided the troublesome DNF's with only four. However, the lowly average finish of 32.4 from last year needs some major work. We believe PPR is dedicated to that cause.

43. Travis Kvapil - Kvapil doesn't currently have a ride, but a likely destination might be the No. 26 Toyota of BK Racing. The 10-year veteran of the Sprint Cup Series had three different driving gigs in 2014 that added up to 21 total starts. The highlight of his season was a stellar sixth-place finish in last October's Talladega race for Circle Sport Racing. If Kvapil can land a steady ride, he has the capability of climbing these rankings.

44. Michael McDowell - McDowell will return in another part-time effort for Leavine Family Racing. They should run at least 20 races in the No. 95 Ford. The journeyman driver captured one stunning Top-10 finish for this team last season, but piled up five DNF's and three DNQ's. The team's lack of owner points makes them a qualifying risk each time they attempt an event.

45. Ty Dillon - The younger Dillon brother should make a couple more token starts for the No. 33 team of Circle Sport Racing in 2015. He made a couple starts for this team last season and averaged a respectable 26.0 finish in those two efforts. Dillon will continue his Sprint Cup education in 2015 and further groom his abilities for a future, full-time ride at RCR someday down the road.

46. Michael Waltrip - Waltrip will fill the seat of the MWR No. 55 Toyota of Brian Vickers in the Daytona 500, and he'll spot start in the other three super speedway events of 2015. The veteran driver's impact is limited due to his light schedule, but he's a skilled and competitive driver on these huge ovals. That's something to remember in the weekly lineup leagues of fantasy racing.

47. Timmy Hill - Team Xtreme Racing will put Hill back behind the wheel again in the upcoming season. The young driver only made 11 starts for multiple teams last year in a mostly start-and-park capacity. Financial issues and sponsorship limitation keep this team from being more competitive and full-time. Hill's impact will be minor until things either improve or he changes teams.

48. Bobby Labonte - Labonte has reached Michael Waltrip status in his NASCAR career. The former champion is now a part-time super speedway driver for the No. 32 team of Go FAS Racing. Labonte's past champion's status guarantees that the team will qualify for these events, and his steady experience on the larger ovals guarantees that the team will get quality starts in those events.

49. Brian Scott - The up-and-coming Richard Childress Racing driver should get some more starts in the Circle Sport Racing No. 33 Chevrolet this season. He made six starts for this team last season with one pole position and one Top-25 finish. Scott will focus mainly on the pursuit of the Xfinity Series championship, but he'll get some good licks in with this part-time Cup gig in 2015.

50. Brett Moffitt - Between Premium Motorsports and Michael Waltrip Racing, Moffitt should get plenty of part-time action in 2015. The 22-year-old made seven starts last season and claimed his first Top-25 finish in his debut. Moffitt is guaranteed a start in the second race of the season in the No. 55 Toyota at Atlanta, but not much is known about his schedule outside of this.