Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth among notable drivers seeking to overcome early season unevenness

When Jimmie Johnson headed into Easter break by winning at Texas Motor Speedway, it marked the first time he reached victory lane in 2017, snapping a six-race stretch where he had failed to post a top-five finish. That was the longest he’s ever gone into a season without a win, which, of course, brought questions of what was wrong with the defending Monster Energy Cup Series champion.

Was the No. 48 team experiencing a championship hangover? Was something still amiss inside Hendrick Motorsports, which had gone through an unprecedented dry spell in 2016? Was there a deeper issue?

The answer wasn’t that anything specific was wrong, more so a confluence of factors that contributed to the middling start. But what Johnson’s Texas triumph showed was how quickly perception can change during the early stages of a season.

Now, with Johnson scoring his first win accompanied by teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. finishing a season-best fifth, things don’t appear nearly as gloomy inside the Hendrick camp. Johnson and the No. 48 team are giving the appearance of a combination that’s been a perennial dominant force.

But Johnson wasn’t the lone notable big name off to an uninspiring start to the season. That group includes Earnhardt, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, and Matt Kenseth, all of whom were considered locks to make the playoffs and harbored realistic hopes of winning a championship entering the year.

Will they soon rebound like Johnson, or is it time to begin panicking?

Current points rank: Seventh

Season to date: Similar to Johnson, Busch has been better than his results indicate. Strong runs at Daytona and Las Vegas were negated because of accidents not of his doing. He was leading at Phoenix before a late caution erased his advantage, and he led the most laps and finished second at Martinsville. What is a concern is how he’s performed on intermediate tracks, with nondescript finishes at Atlanta, Fontana, and Texas.

Outlook: Busch is more than capable of winning anywhere and at any time. It would surprise no one if that first win occurred Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway, a track where he’s a five-time winner (tied for first among active drivers) and first in laps led -- though he has crashed three out of the past four races at the half-mile Tennessee oval.

Current points rank: 10th

Season to date: Take away being in the wrong place at the wrong time at Daytona and Fontana, a blown tire at Las Vegas, and a speeding penalty that cost him a surefire win at Atlanta and Harvick’s season would look much different. But as it is, he has just a single top five and sits 10th in points, one position behind Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Clint Bowyer.

Outlook: Any concern SHR’s switch from Chevrolet to Ford would slow the No. 4 team has proven unfounded. Harvick leads the series in laps led and should’ve already had a mark in the win column. The first victory is coming, and so too is the trademark high-level consistency frequently exhibited by the 2014 Cup champion.

Current points rank: 15th

Season to date: Unlike Busch, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Hamlin has largely lacked competitiveness this season. That’s evident by the fact his best results are sixth and 10th, he’s led all of 28 laps and most weeks it’s been a struggle to run near the front. Texas was particularly frustrating, as he spun in practice, qualified 16th, then never found any speed in the race en route to finishing 25th.

Outlook: With traditional strongholds upcoming, Richmond (April 30), Talladega (May 7), and Kansas (May 13), Hamlin’s season could turn around in a hurry. And he doesn’t even necessarily need a win, as a string of top 10s would be sufficient after a rollercoaster start, which would then lead the way to Hamlin finding the form that propelled him to a career-best 11.8 average finish a year ago.

Current points rank: 20th

Season to date: Earnhardt was leading the season-opening Daytona 500 when a tire failure on Busch’s car caused an accident that left NASCAR’s most popular driver with no avenue of escape, and another potential top-five vanished when he was swept into an accident at Martinsville. In between those races, Earnhardt was rather ordinary posting finishes of 30th, 16th, 14th, and 16th. His fifth at Texas marked the first time all season the No. 88 team put together a complete race.

Outlook: He doesn’t possess the stellar capability of Johnson or Busch to think he could pop off a win any week, but Bristol and Talladega are among Earnhardt’s better tracks and good results the next two races is realistic. More than anything, the No. 88 team needs to string together some consistent top-10 finishes, something it hasn’t done in some time.

Current points rank: 22nd

Season to date: Three crashes -- none of his own doing -- have Kenseth in a sizeable points hole at the regular season’s quarter-mark. Those accidents have otherwise masked what has been a solid start for the 45-year-old, who has as many top-10 finishes thus far as Busch and Harvick, and more than Johnson, Hamlin, and Earnhardt, and yet has a 21.8 average finish.

Outlook: Thanks to the new three-stage format, points deficits can be quickly overcome, and the lack of consistency isn’t a concern, either, as Kenseth isn’t a driver who crashes with great frequency. That means if his luck evens out and JGR can find a smidge more speed, Kenseth should have little trouble morphing back into the driver whose 14 wins since 2013 (the year he joined JGR) is tied for fourth-best.