Comments: NASCAR Picks for Auto Club

Following last weekend's trip to Bristol, there are some very surprising patterns developing. Fantasy stalwarts Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch are sitting outside the top 10 in points, and Kasey Kahne's career with Hendrick Motorsports is getting off to a horrible start. Meanwhile, the much-maligned Michael Waltrip Racing organization put three cars in the top five in Thunder Valley and has three cars in the top 10 in owner points. Only time will tell if the balance of power is shifting, but in the short term, owners may need to adjust their strategy to ride the hot hands.

Adopting a new game plan could be particularly useful this weekend at Auto Club Speedway. Outside of a handful of drivers, there are very few consistent options at the 2.0-mile track. In fact, only five drivers have two or more consecutive top-10 finishes at ACS entering this weekend's race. As a result, fantasy owners may have to rely on momentum as the determining factor when filling out their roster this weekend.

1. Jimmie Johnson, Lowe's/Kobalt Tools
2. Matt Kenseth, Husky/Dollar General
3. Tony Stewart, Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1
4. Kevin Harvick, Budweiser/Rheem
5. Carl Edwards, Fastenal/Aflac/UPS/Subway
6. Jeff Gordon, Drive to End Hunger/Axalta
7. Ryan Newman, Quicken Loans/Haas Automation
8. Clint Bowyer, 5-Hour Energy
9. Brad Keselowski, Miller Lite
10. Denny Hamlin, FedEx
11. Kyle Busch, Mars Brands/Interstate Batteries
12. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., National Guard/Diet Mountain Dew
13. Mark Martin, Aaron's Dream Machine
14. Greg Biffle, 3M/Bondo
15. Martin Truex, Jr., NAPA Auto Parts
16. Joey Logano, Shell-Pennzoil
17. Kasey Kahne, Farmers Insurance/Quaker State
18. A.J. Allmendinger, Phoenix Racing
19. Paul Menard, Menards
20. Kurt Busch, Furniture Row
21. Jeff Burton, Caterpillar/Cheerios
22. Juan Montoya, Target
23. Aric Almirola, Smithfield Foods
24. Regan Smith, Guy Roofing
25. Jamie McMurray, McDonald's/Cessna
26. Marcos Ambrose, Stanley/Dewalt Power Tools
27. Landon Cassill, Little Joe's Autos
28. David Reutimann, Burger King/Doctor Pepper
29. David Ragan, CSX Transportation/Peanut Patch
30. Brendan Gaughan,