Take 5: RCR’s revival, general playoff peril among Texas story lines

Sunday's eventful 500-miler at Texas Motor Speedway came with a host of plot twists, a fresh face in Victory Lane and another wrench in the jumble that is the NASCAR Cup Series' playoff picture. With plenty to size up from the Lone Star State, here are the five story lines and takeaways that left us buzzing about the O'Reilly Auto Parts 500.

SPOONING IT OUT: Austin Dillon added a third Cup Series win to his portfolio Sunday at Texas, punctuating the victory with something that's become a favorite clapback: "Not bad for a silver spoon kid, right?" After a 2016 run-in with Kevin Harvick at Texas, Dillon served a similar volley back, answering the former Richard Childress Racing driver's criticism that Dillon and his brother, Ty, had had "everything fed to 'em with a spoon." The utensil also made an appearance in a cruder radio transmission from Alex Bowman during last year's playoffs, shortly after Dillon retaliated because of earlier contact. Sunday's win -- his first since the 2018 Daytona 500, a span of 88 races -- went a long way toward trying to convince his doubters. "You got to think positive, know that it's going to turn around and come your way," said Dillon, who credited family, friends and faith as his support system. "I know I can do this."

A ONE AND A TWO ... : How long ago had it been since Richard Childress Racing cheered a 1-2 finish for the organization? Austin Dillon was still a regular in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series at the time, when Clint Bowyer battled in a door-slamming top-two sweep with teammate Jeff Burton on Oct. 23, 2011, at Talladega Superspeedway. Both of those drivers are long gone from RCR, and so are both of their car numbers, for that matter -- Bowyer's No. 33 and Burton's No. 31. The moment was a long time in the making for the team, which makes its home in the close-knit community of Welcome, N.C. "When you cross those railroad tracks, there's a sign when you come in there," Dillon said. "I can't wait to get home because I know what it's going to say on that sign: RCR goes 1 2, and the 3 team brings home a victory at Texas."

AN ERROR'S IMPACT: Quin Houff admitted to making a "rookie mistake" when he veered toward pit road and collected Christopher Bell and Matt DiBenedetto in the process. But the late yellow flag had greater consequence, bisecting what would have been the final pit-stop cycle and putting early pit-road takers at a disadvantage. Prime among those included Denny Hamlin and Ryan Blaney, who stood to emerge running 1-2 had the pit sequence played out under green-flag conditions. Instead, Hamlin had trouble back in the pack and was involved in two subsequent caution periods, finishing 20th. Blaney fared better in seventh place, but fell short of projections after sweeping both stages and leading a race-high 150 laps. "Really, there’s nothing you can do about it in the situation, just something you have no control over, so there's no point in dwelling on it and what happened," Blaney said. "Honestly, I don't know what the opposite material of a golden horseshoe is, but we've found it."

PLAYOFF PERKS: Austin Dillon made it 10 Cup Series winners this season, joining the ranks of virtually automatic qualifiers for the NASCAR Playoffs. His Texas victory took him off the postseason bubble, but made that margin of error ever tighter for those vying to fill out the 16-driver grid. Jimmie Johnson provisionally holds the distinction of being the final driver in, but three drivers behind him are all within range -- teammate William Byron two points back, rookie Tyler Reddick 14 points behind and Erik Jones a mere 24 points off the cut line. Just eight races remain before the playoff field is locked in, and two wild-card events loom next month at Daytona International Speedway -- an Aug. 16 inaugural on the oval-road course layout and the Aug. 29 regular-season finale, to be contested for the first time on a superspeedway.

HENDRICK HANGOVER: Hendrick Motorsports drivers Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman have already clinched postseason berths with victories, but teammates Jimmie Johnson and William Byron (see aforementioned playoff bubble reference) have work to do to keep title hopes alive. Sunday did not represent a banner day for any of the four. Elliott carried the torch in 12th place, but his three teammates all finished outside the top 25: Johnson 26th after a Stage 2 scrape of the wall snowballed, Bowman 30th after a late-race crash with Denny Hamlin, and Byron 37th after involvement in two wrecks, including a final-stage tangle with Ty Dillon. "Honestly, it’s going to be tough," Byron said of his road to a playoff spot. "We just have to find speed first. We're not really running good at all and we've got to figure that out. Obviously, the 13 (Ty Dillon) got up into us there and took us out, but we were pretty far back anyway."