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DraftKings picks for Atlanta

I’m playing DraftKings this season and will be posting my picks here each week. Disclosure: If you want to play and sign up using this link, DraftKings will give my website a commission.

Last week’s results: Played the free Daytona entry game and finished around 8,700th out of nearly 80,000. Won $0.

Season results: $0 wagered, $0 won in one contest.

This week’s contest: Playing the $1 entry “Happy Hour” $20,000 payout game.

My picks ($50,000 salary cap):

— Jimmie Johnson ($10,600). Yeah, I’m taking the most expensive guy. But he starts 18th, and that’s an attractive possibility for a points from positions gained. Plus he’s won here for two straight years.

— Kyle Larson ($9,100). This is a little bit of a gut pick, so maybe that’s a bad idea (my gut is usually wrong). But Larson is so talented at both driving a loose car and running the high line, and Atlanta offers both. He’s not exactly a steal at $9,100, and there’s not much statistically to back me up here, so…this might not work.

— Austin Dillon ($8,200). I’m riding with the Richard Childress Racing cars and affiliates this weekend. Four RCR-related cars were in the top 12 of the best 10-lap averages from final practice. Ryan Newman almost won the pole and was fastest in 10-lap average, but I’m staying away due to his low ceiling for points. Dillon, though, starts 19th.

— Kasey Kahne ($8,000). I picked Kahne because he starts 29th, so he’s the No. 1 option from a top team who starts back in the field. He was only 26th in fastest 10-lap averages from final practice — NOT GOOD — but I still think he could make up some positions.

— Ty Dillon ($6,100). I don’t feel super confident about this one, since a 500-mile race offers a lot of opportunities for young drivers to mess up. But Dillon was 10th-fastest for 10-lap averages in final practice, which was faster than drivers like Kyle Busch and Joey Logano. Plus, he starts 26th.

— Michael McDowell ($5,700). McDowell was gaining some decent momentum at the end of last year and getting top-20 finishes — and he’s another RCR-related car. So I’ll take a chance on him after he failed to get through inspection and starts the race 36th. Since he never took a qualifying lap, he starts the race on fresh tires — which could be big at Atlanta.

Note: I’m leaving $2,300 in salary cap on the table here. That definitely seems like a bad idea, but at the same time, I’m trying to think of what will gain the most points through position differential in addition to a respectable finish. We’ll see how it goes.

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USFantasy Sports offers new way to bet on NASCAR

Starting with the Daytona 500, there’s a new way to bet on NASCAR — at least if you find yourself in Las Vegas.

Typically, NASCAR wagering at a sportsbook involves picking a winner and hoping that driver beats 39 others. Your odds in those situations aren’t very good, because — let’s face it — it’s pretty hard to call the winner of a NASCAR race (at least it is for me).

But a company called USFantasy Sports is remaking the model.

If you’re familiar with horse racing wagers, this is somewhat similar (although the company shies away from comparisons because it can sound complex to amateur bettors). Basically, USF’s system will allow NASCAR win, place and show bets (for as little as $2) — and also offer exactas (picking first and second) and trifectas (picking first, second and third).

What’s particularly attractive is USF has separated drivers into groups. For the Daytona 500, for example, there are two groups of 10 drivers. So you only have to pick the winner (or second, if you choose a “place” bet) among 10 drivers instead of 40. Obviously, that also makes exactas and trifectas more realistic as well.

“You can just bet Dale Earnhardt Jr. and not worry about anything else except for his finish — and he doesn’t have to win the event, he just to beat those other guys,” said Robert Walker, USF Vice President of Strategic Planning, via phone last week. “Or you could have Kyle Larson, and he just has to beat the other nine individuals.”

The betting is pari-mutuel, which means the odds aren’t set by the sports book — they change based on the number of money being wagered by players.

Walked said USF believes NASCAR lends itself to this type of gambling, it’s just that the technology hasn’t been there to put it into place until now. Bettors will be able to play at nearly every sports book in Las Vegas (the odds sheets will be set out along with the standard wager information) and bets can be placed at any window.

As the season gets started, USF will offer wagers on things like the pole winners and Xfinity races and also have different driver group sizes (as little as four and as many as 12). The company could also expand to states outside of Nevada, which could really take the concept to a national level.

“All we want to do is put something out that’s fun and exciting for the player,” Walker said. “We’re all excited about NASCAR specifically because it lends itself to these exotics (like exactas, trifectas and daily doubles).”

Walker believes there’s also an appeal for daily fantasy players because the players are already selected and there’s no salary cap involved.

As an example, here’s one of the groups for the Daytona 500:

— Kyle Larson

— Kurt Busch

— Kasey Kahne

— Austin Dillon

— Clint Bowyer

— Jamie McMurray

— Greg Biffle for some reason

— Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

— Daniel Suarez

— Danica Patrick