"What in the hell?": Dale Earnhardt Jr. taken aback by the NASCAR playoff standings surprises

Dale Earnhardt Jr. recently shared his takes on the drivers he believes would and wouldn't make it out of Bristol's elimination race. Following the first two playoff races at Atlanta and Watkins Glen, the playoff standings table has come to a surprising place.

This is so because the top-performing drivers and past champions such as Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., and Kyle Larson are nowhere near the top. Hamlin is in 13th place, Truex in 15th, and Larson in 9th.

However, other underdog drivers have taken up the top section. Austin Cindric in 3rd, Alex Bowman in 4th, and Daniel Suarez in 5th.

Earnhardt Jr. highlighted this recently on his podcast as he said:

"Some interesting names that are really in good positions. Austin Cindric is in 3rd position, +43, what in the hell? Alex Bowman at +41, Daniel Suarez, +36. Those three guys sitting there in the top 5, no one had that happen, no one."

Following this, Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared his thoughts on drivers who are potentially in trouble. He named Chase Briscoe (+6) as a driver who'd be thrilled to find himself in the position he is. As for William Byron (+25), Junior said he's at a "little risk going into Bristol".

As for Hamlin and Ty Gibbs, the former HMS driver said they would be a little nervous, but he expressed his confidence in the #11 driver.

"Denny is good at Bristol. I'm sure he'll try to put together a smart race and he's got a great shot at getting out of there and surviving this round," Earnhardt Jr. said.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. names the drivers that won't make it past the first round of playoffs at Bristol

In the last two regular season races, at Daytona and Darlington, Harrison Burton and Chase Briscoe, respectively, came out to be surprise victors. Both drivers booked their playoff tickets with their wins.

However, because the first two playoff races did not go their way, Earnhardt Jr. believes a first-round exit is on the cards for Burton and Briscoe.

"Harrison Burton will have a hard time going in and making up 20 points. I don't think Martin Truex Jr. gets it done, -14, that's a bit of a tall order. I believe Chase Briscoe will struggle to not get kicked out by a Denny Hamlin. Can Denny go in there and make up a 6 point up on Chase Briscoe? Yes," he said.

As for Brad Keselowski, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said that in his opinion, he wouldn't beat Hamlin. But despite that, the RFK driver could outpoint the other Joe Gibbs Racing driver, Ty Gibbs.

Earnhardt Jr. said that Gibbs would struggle, and for Keselowski to have a shot, Gibbs must do well in the first two stages of the race.