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The NASCAR report: Penzoil 400 preview in Las Vegas

The NASCAR report: Penzoil 400 preview in Las Vegas
The Monster Energy Cup returns to Las Vegas. Getty Images

This Sunday, the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup series makes its return to Sin City for the Penzoil 400. This begins their "West Coast swing" as they go to Phoenix next week and to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. the next. This is the part of the season where we truly begin to see who is for real and who is just a flash in the pan. The Las Vegas Motor Speedway is another half-mile oval, but this track has character. At this track there are plenty of places to pass, but that doesn't mean we still don't see some beatin' and bangin' on and off the track. Last year Kyle Busch and Joey Logano had to be separated after Busch approached Logano and hit him in the face.

The track has also produced some of the most exciting finishes to date. Last year Brad Keselowski was two laps away from victory until an electrical issue dropped him to fourth, handing the victory to eventual champion Martin Truex, Jr. Three years earlier in 2014 Keselowski  was in the complete opposite position when Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was leading the race but on the final lap, Jr. ran out of gas on the backstretch handing the victory to Keselowski, so it is fair to say the track is just as unpredictable as the city it's located in so on that note here are my predictions for the Penzoil 400:

The favorite going into this week would obviously be Keselowski. As I have mentioned above, the man has been up front here when it has counted and was also victorious in 2016 when he beat out Busch in the final six laps. While he is easily the chic pick for this race, I am going to go in a different direction, I think that this week Kyle Larson will come out on top. While yes, over his four starts at the track he has had a 15.75 average finish, I don't believe that they is indicative of how well he has been running beforehand. This track has not been kind to Larson in the past even in his time in the Xfinity series, when in 2013 he was leading early in the race before he was turned by Trevor Bayne.

The bad luck also extended to the Cup side as well, only gaining one top five last year when he finished second but this year I think it will all turn around for the 42 crew. This track caters to Kyle's driving style; he usually drives all the way up near the wall and with some of the passes we have seen here that should be perfect for him. My dark horse for this weekend's race is Ryan Blaney. While yes, he has been far from an underdog this season seeing how he is second in points currently, but he is still at 18/1 odds to win the race and has not been listed as one of the favorites to win. Blaney has run exceptionally well here. While he has only run here twice, in those two races he has finished sixth and seventh, so it is fair to say that this is one of his best race tracks. Look for Blaney to be up front for this week as he tries to navigate his Ford to victory lane.

Overall, in my opinion Las Vegas is always one my favorite races to watch and with nothing but sunshine in the weather forecast (unlike last week) I can't wait to see who comes out on top. This is going to be a race you won't want to miss.

(All stats and information used in this article is brought to you by the good folks at driveraverages.com and Racing-Refrence.com the best website for all NASCAR stats).

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The Texans are the class of the division. Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.

The Houston Texans received a lot of praise for their moves in free agency across various outlets. And for good reason, most people believe the team got significantly better with the additions of Danielle Hunter, Azeez Al-Shaair, and Denico Autry among others.

But there's another factor to consider this offseason. How much have the other teams in the AFC South improved?

When looking at the PFF grades in free agency, the Colts received a B-minus. Most of the Colts moves this offseason involved spending a lot of money re-signing their own players. Which is great in theory, but it's hard to improve the overall quality of your roster when you're bringing back players that were already there to begin with. A lot will be riding on player development for the Colts to see a big jump this season. A healthy quarterback wouldn't hurt either.

The Jaguars have made some big additions financially this offseason by signing receiver Gabe Davis and defensive tackle Arik Armstead. They also lost the top receiver on the market, Calvin Ridley, to the Titans. Gabe Davis wasn't able to establish himself as a reliable No. 2 receiver with Josh Allen throwing him the ball in Buffalo. So it's hard to believe he'll take the next step in Jacksonville. Their best move of the offseason might have been retaining edge rusher Josh Allen by using the franchise tag on him. So what did PFF think of Jacksonville's offseason? They received a B-minus, just like the Colts.

The Titans have a lot of turnover heading into the 2024 season, and not just on the roster. They have a new head coach in Brian Callahan, who's looking to revamp Tennessee's offense. Early in free agency, they agreed to terms with former Cowboys running back Tony Pollard, signing him to a 3-year deal at $8 million per season. Which is more money than the Ravens are paying for Derrick Henry, who left the Titans in free agency. Calvin Ridley was the most notable addition to the squad, he received a 4-year, $92 million deal. And while this could be viewed as an overpay, at least he gives the Titans' offense some upside. Their receiving corps looks a lot more dangerous with Ridley added to DeAndre Hopkins and Treylon Burks.

They also spent big at the center position, adding Lloyd Cushenberry on a 4-year, $50 million contract.

Because the Titans spent a lot of money on some highly coveted players, PFF gave them a B.

Now that brings us to the Texans. The Texans re-signed some of their own players like Dalton Schultz and Noah Brown. But they also made some big splashes with Hunter, Autry, Al-Shaair, and Joe Mixon. But the Texans spent their money in a more conservative way by not handing out many contracts over two years in length.

The Texans managed to add the best pass rusher in free agency with Hunter, but it's only a two-year deal. The overall talent level is going up on this roster, and GM Nick Caserio isn't having to sign players to long contracts that could come back and haunt him.

That's why we're seeing post-free agency power rankings coming out with Houston in the Top 10. And that's also why PFF gave the Texans an A for their moves in free agency.

Be sure to check out the video above as Craig from Sports Talk Extra takes an in-depth look at PFF's grades for the AFC South, and much more!

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