1. Carl Edwards  Eight top 10s in the last nine races for Carl. Three of those went for wins with consecutive third-place runs now heading to Kansas. Sustained excellence.

2. Jimmie Johnson  Steady as she goes for Team Lowe’s. Four consecutive top 5s for Johnson & Co. with no signs of slowing up. You just have a feeling another win or three is right around the corner.

3. Greg Biffle  Where did these guys come from? Honestly they weren’t far off anyway, with four straight top-15 finishes before the two-race win streak. Suddenly, they’re title contenders.

4. Kevin Harvick  Not typically a fly-under-the-radar guy but has been recently, with eight straight top-10 runs. A win would be nice, though.

5. Matt Kenseth  Yes, this team is worthy of the fifth-place ranking despite the poor showings at Richmond and Loudon. Throw out those two accidents not of his making and Kenseth has four straight top 10s.

6. Denny Hamlin  Struggles once again at Dover. Before that he had three third- and one ninth-place run. Unfortunately, momentum is not on his side.

7. Kyle Busch  Still dangerous (maybe more so, with nothing to lose), Busch and crew must keep their heads up and overcome the mechanical failures to return to form.

8. Jeff Burton  It’s safe to say Burton and the boys have hit on something. Three straight top 10s prove it.

9. Mark Martin  Runs of eighth, sixth, fifth and fourth in his last four starts. Crazy old man ...

10. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.  Nasty 24th at Dover follows fourth- and fifth-place runs. Led Zeppelin said it best: “Communication breakdown, it’s always the same…”

11. Clint Bowyer  Top-12 finisher in five straight, but like his RCR teammates, he needs to win one. Kansas could be a sweet spot for him.

12. Tony Stewart  Is it really possible Tony doesn’t win a race this season?

13. Jeff Gordon  Had as good of a car as he’s had all summer and could still only muster a seventh-place showing.

14. David Reutimann  Late penalty burned him at Dover. He had a fourth-straight top 15 sown up before that.

15. David Ragan  Cheer up, Dave. A slew of 1.5-milers are on the way.

Just off the lead lap: Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne, Bobby Labonte, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman, Martin Truex, Jr.