Sprint Cup Power Rankings - Talladega

1. Jeff Burton - It should have been a worse night for the 31 team, but he turned it into a sixth place finish.

2. Carl Edward - I think it's clear he's the guy to beat this year after his amazing comeback from his multiple penalties on pit road. He was a lap down and outside the top-30 midway through the race and still finished in the top-10.

3. Jimmie Johnson - He may be back or he may not be back but it's clear the 48 team's struggles are behind them.

4. Kyle Busch - He was a nonfactor for most of the night but I still think we haven't heard the last of him.

5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. - It's becoming a recurring theme now: Jr. starts near the front, leads laps, and then his car fades away toward the end.

6. Denny Hamlin - His worst finish in the last four races is just sixth.

7. Kevin Harvick - His last three finishes are 12th, 11th, & 19th. If he keeps that up, he won't be sitting in the top-10 for very much longer.

8. Tony Stewart - He had a pretty cool-looking car on Saturday night, but didn't have the cool finish to go with it. His team never could get a handle on the car and a late error on pit road by Stewart cost them a top-10 finish.

9. Greg Biffle - He needed a strong finish at Phoenix and got it.

10. Clint Bowyer - He's clearly one of the best on these flat, mile-long tracks and I expect him move up in the standings as the season goes on.

11. Jeff Gordon - He had a solid 13th place finish after finishing dead last at Texas but it's clear the team still has some work to do on their setups.

12. Ryan Newman - His momentum is dead now after starting the season off well. He's been inconsistent and he had a last place finish on Saturday night. He's gonna need a strong finish at 'Dega in a few weeks.

Aaron Larsen