X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

NASCAR DFS Strategy: DraftKings Sleepers and Overvalued Drivers - Geico 500 (New Start)

A rain delay on Sunday means that the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway has been pushed back to Monday.

It also means that DraftKings has put up some new contests for the new attempt at running the race. And because we have data on what drivers were at what ownership percentage from Sunday's lineups, we can identify some underowned and overowned drivers who you might want to be aware of if you're trying to build a unique lineup.

Based on data from CBS's Mike McClure, here's a look at some interesting ownership percentages among drivers from Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega and what that means about drivers who might be sleepers and overvalued for the New Start slates.

Featured Promo: Get any DFS Premium Bundle for for 30% off using code NEW! Win more with expert advice from proven winners and exclusive DFS tools. Get instant access to RotoBaller's Lineup Optimizers, Research Stations, daily picks and VIP chat rooms across 10 sports! Go Premium, Win More!

 

Ownership Rates From The $1.25M Big One

 

Potential Overvalued Drivers

Brendan Gaughan - 44% Drafted

Everyone seems to have identified the same sleeper pick for this race with Beard Motorsports's Brendan Gaughan.

I get that. He starts 39th and has a pretty good track record at these kinds of tracks, including a seventh-place finish at Daytona this year. But at the same time, 44 percent of people in the big contest on DraftKings played Gaughan. If you're setting a lineup for the New Start contests today, do you really want to invest in someone who's in that many rosters when you factor in that we're at such an unpredictable racetrack? It's also worth remembering that in all of Gaughan's part-time seasons, he's never recorded more than one top 10 finish, and he crashed out in half of his four plate races last year.

Ty Dillon - 34% Drafted

Another driver who a lot of people seem to love is Ty Dillon. It makes sense, as he starts 33rd and is significantly cheaper than another driver who starts that far back like Christopher Bell.

RCR and their related teams like Dillon's Germain Racing 13 car have fine equipment for a track like Talladega, but with how unpredictable and chaotic the middle of the pack seems to always be here, I'm a little wary of Dillon, and he's in a lot of lineups already. If this is a race where uniqueness is maybe even more important than usual in lineup building, I'm fine pivoting off of Dillon.

Christopher Bell - 38% Drafted

I get that he has tremendous place differential upside, but Bell is also the fifth-most expensive driver on this entire slate. He ran solid here in Xfinity and hasn't crashed out of an Xfinity or Truck Series race at the track, but a 38-percent ownership rate just feels like too much for Bell when you factor in how high his DFS pricing is. There are cheaper drivers who might not have the same upside from a place differential perspective but who have experience here, and I'd rather move on to one of them than roster someone who nearly four-tenths of people are drafting.

 

Did you know RotoBaller has a Premium DFS NASCAR subscription?

Like what you read today? You can show your support for Justin by using promo code CARTER when purchasing a NASCAR Premium Pass. You get 10% off and full access to all of our Premium NASCAR articles, DFS tools, and Lineup Optimizer!

 

Potential Sleepers

Jimmie Johnson - 7% Drafted

Yes, Johnson starts fourth in this race, which introduces a lot of place differential downside for him should he get caught in a wreck. And yes, last year was a mess for him here. But the Hendrick cars have speed this season and Johnson's won a pair of races in the past at Talladega, plus has three wins at Daytona. While the downside is obvious here, if I'm putting together multiple lineups, I might throw him in one or two just to be different, especially since he's shown he can win here.

John Hunter Nemechek - 5% Drafted

Starting 22nd doesn't give Nemechek the same place differential upside of other drivers, but at $5,500, Nemechek can fit into most lineup builds and has an advantage over the drivers priced lower than him: in a potentially clean or mostly clean race in which the ability to keep up with the main pack matters, Nemechek's got better equipment under him than any cheaper driver does.

He also had an 11th-place finish in the Daytona 500, plus had tops 10s in both his Xfinity Talladega starts. His Truck results aren't quite as good, but Nemechek's shown he can wheel a car around a superspeedway.

Gray Gaulding - 4% Drafted

The winning DFS lineup at Talladega is going to leave money on the table. That's just how racing here goes. And what better way to leave money on the table than by throwing the cheapest driver in the field into a lineup!

Under normal circumstances, my feelings about rostering Gray Gaulding would lie somewhere between "no" and "once again, no." But superspeedways are the great equalizer, and Gaulding may be starting higher than I'm comfortable with in 29th, but at this point you're only playing someone this low because you're hoping they survive the wreckage lottery and end up with a top 15 finish.

And hey, it could happen! Rick Ware Racing isn't a good team, but Gaulding is a solid NASCAR driver. Ride around in the back all day, avoid the Big One, and leave Talladega with a solid but unspectacular finish. Rostering him is a risk, but everything at Talladega is a risk, isn't it?

NASCAR DFS News and Driver Outlooks

More Fantasy NASCAR Analysis



The Keys to Weekly NASCAR Success

NASCAR is back, and it's time for you to win more with RotoBaller!
Our NASCAR Premium Package for DFS and betting features several heavy hitters and proven winners.

Jordan McAbee anchors the team with his exclusive NASCAR DFS and betting picks, DFS projections and algorithm-predicted finishing order! Jordan had a 60+ unit betting profit in 2024 NASCAR, and a 25% average annual profit since 2018. He won the FSWA Racing Writer Of The Year award in 2023, and has been nominated for DFS Writer Of The Year in 2024.

Five-time NASCAR Racing Writer of the Year finalist and fantasy industry legend Scott "The King" Engel is also in the crew, bringing you his weekly strategies and lineup picks. Set your winning DFS lineups with our award-winning team. He has been nominated once again in 2024 for this award.

POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Griffin Conine

To Have Shoulder Surgery On Tuesday
Luke Keaschall

Twins Prospect Luke Keaschall Suffers Broken Forearm
Logan Gilbert

Leaves Friday's Start With Forearm Tightness

Vikings Select Tai Felton To Finish Day 2

Seahawks Select Quarterback Jalen Milroe With The 92nd Pick Overall

Browns Select Dillon Gabriel 94th Overall

Packers Pick Savion Williams At No. 87 overall

Steelers Snag Kaleb Johnson In Round 3

Broncos Select Wide Receiver Pat Bryant With The 74th Overall Pick

Texans Select Jaylin Noel With 79th Pick

Lions Select Wide Receiver Isaac TeSlaa With The 70th Overall Pick
Jack Leiter

To Start On Sunday

Patriots Add Wide Receiver Kyle Williams In Round 3

Browns Draft Harold Fannin Jr. With 67th Pick
Garrett Mitchell

Makes Early Exit
Luke Keaschall

Removed Early On Friday
Blake Snell

Likely Avoids Major Injury
Cole Ragans

Dealing With Mild Groin Strain

Broncos Add RJ Harvey To Backfield With 60th Pick

Raiders Select Jack Bech With 58th Pick

Chargers Add Wide Receiver Tre Harris In Round 2
Detroit Lions

Lions Acquire 57th Pick From Broncos

Seahawks Draft Elijah Arroyo 50th Overall
Carolina Panthers

Panthers Acquire 51st Pick From Broncos
Arizona Cardinals

Cardinals Snag Will Johnson At No. 47

Jets Add A Pass-Catcher With Mason Taylor At No. 42

Rams Select Terrance Ferguson With 46th Pick
Houston Texans

Texans Acquire 48th Pick From Raiders, Draft Aireontae Ersery

Saints Snag Tyler Shough At No. 40
Brenton Doyle

Out For Personal Reasons On Friday
Brandin Podziemski

Not On Injury Report For Game 3
Jimmy Butler III

Warriors Optimistic About Jimmy Butler III Playing Saturday
Jae'Sean Tate

To Remain Out Saturday
Jock Landale

Unavailable For Game 3
Terry Rozier

Out On Saturday
Jrue Holiday

Ruled Out For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Orlando
Kevin Love

To Miss Saturday's Game
Jaylen Brown

Available For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Magic
Gary Payton II

Iffy For Saturday's Action
Jayson Tatum

Officially Available On Friday For Game 3 Against Magic
Will Smith

Back From Injury On Friday
Luke Kennard

Questionable For Game 4 On Saturday
Darius Garland

Listed As Questionable For Game 3
Ja Morant

To Miss Game 4 On Saturday
Rui Hachimura

Available For Game 3 In Minnesota
Aaron Ekblad

Available To Return Saturday
Erik Swanson

Ryan Burr Progressing
Daulton Varsho

To Return On Tuesday At The Latest
Max Scherzer

Takes Positive Step On Friday
Aleksander Barkov

Questionable For Saturday
Gabriel Landeskog

Set For Larger Role In Game 4
Calvin Pickard

To Start Game 3 For Oilers
Randy Arozarena

Resting For First Time This Year
Jonas Siegenthaler

To Play Limited Minutes In Game 3
MLB

Red Sox-Guardians Game Postponed On Friday
Luke Hughes

Remains Out On Friday
MLB

Tigers-Orioles Postponed On Friday
Patrik Laine

A Game-Time Decision Friday
Yainer Diaz

Out On Friday Against Royals
Iván Herrera

Ivan Herrera Hopes To Start Rehab Assignment Next Week
Salvador Perez

Sitting Out For First Time This Season
Jaylen Brown

Questionable For Game 3 On Friday
Brendan Donovan

Back In Action On Friday
Jimmy Butler III

Could Miss Game 3 On Saturday
Coby Mayo

Getting On A Roll At Triple-A
Carlos Prates

Looks To Remain Undefeated In The UFC
Ian Machado Garry

Set For UFC Kansas City Main Event
Cade Cunningham

Collects Double-Double In Loss
Jalen Brunson

Drops 30 Points In Game 3
Karl-Anthony Towns

Leads All Scorers In Game 3 Victory
Zhang Mingyang

Scheduled For Co-Main Event
Anthony Smith

Set For His Final UFC Bout
David Onama

Set For Featherweight Bout
Giga Chikadze

Looks To Bounce Back
Abus Magomedov

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
Michel Pereira

Returns To Action At UFC Kansas City
Nicolas Dalby

An Underdog At UFC Kansas City
Randy Brown

A Favorite At UFC Kansas City
Andre Muniz

Set To Open Up UFC Kansas City Main Card
Ikram Aliskerov

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Sergei Bobrovsky

Shuts Out Lightning In Game 2
Cam Fowler

Finishes Thursday's Win With Five Points
Robert Thomas

Posts Four Assists In Game 3 Win
Pavel Buchnevich

Celebrates Hat Trick During Four-Point Performance
Dylan DeMelo

Battling An Illness
Marcus Johansson

Exits Early Thursday
Aleksander Barkov

Hurt In Game 2
Jrue Holiday

Tagged As Questionable For Friday
Jayson Tatum

Likely Out Again On Friday
Anthony Cirelli

Good To Go Thursday
Andrei Vasilevskiy

Looks To Bounce Back In Game 2
Rasmus Ristolainen

To Miss Training Camp
Jonas Siegenthaler

Returns To Practice
Aliaksei Protas

Traveling With Capitals
Gabriel Vilardi

Still Out On Thursday
Max Pacioretty

Set To Join Maple Leafs Lineup For Game 3
Cam Davis

Looking For Better Fortunes At TPC Louisiana
Adam Svensson

Making Third Apperence At Zurich Classic
Max Greyserman

Aiming For Similar Success At TPC Louisiana
Lee Hodges

A High-Upside Player In New Orleans
PGA

Nico Echavarria Looks To Ride Off Of Elite Putting In New Orleans
Gary Woodland

A Player Worth Watching In New Orleans
Max McGreevy

Returns To The Zurich Classic Of New Orleans
Rasmus Hojgaard

In Search Of Consistency Ahead Of Zurich Classic
Sam Stevens

A Boom-Or-Bust Candidate In New Orleans
Nicolai Hojgaard

Looking To Turn Season Around At Zurich Classic
Christiaan Bezuidenhout

Looks To Sway A Hot Putter In Teams Favor At Zurich Classic
Akshay Bhatia

Looking To Bounce Back At TPC Louisiana
Carson Young

Looks To Turn Things Around At TPC Louisiana
Erik Van Rooyen

Looking For Momentum In Louisiana
Andrew Novak

Making Start At TPC Louisiana After Near Miss At Harbour Town
Ben Griffin

Making Third Career Start At Zurich Classic
Taylor Moore

Competing With A New Teammate In New Orleans
Wyndham Clark

Making Return To New Orleans
Kurt Kitayama

Teeing It Up Again In New Orleans
Collin Morikawa

Back At Zurich Classic For Fifth Time
Thomas Detry

Making Third Appearance At New Orleans Team Event
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF